Thursday, December 8, 2022

 

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The Extremism Roundup

Promoting Civil Discourse and Marginalizing the Extremes
A weekly compilation of the most important developments in the struggle against radical ideologies


Islamist Extremism

Bashar Khattab Ghazal al-Sumaidai

One of the most important senior executives of the Daesh/ISIS terrorist organization, Bashar Khattab Ghazal al-Sumaidai, is sent to court after being captured by the Turkish intelligence and Istanbul police on September 9 - Elif Ozturk Ozgoncu/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Connecticut Man Charged With Supporting ISIS

  • Ahmad Khalil Elshazly, 25, of West Haven, Conn., pleaded guilty in Bridgeport federal court to attempting to provide material support to ISIS.
  • In 2018, Elshazly expressed a desire to travel to Syria to fight on behalf of ISIS. In numerous conversations online and in person, he pledged allegiance to ISIS and its leader, Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi.
  • In December 2019, Elshazly paid $500 to a person he believed was an ISIS facilitator who would be able to smuggle him out of the U.S. to Turkey. Read More

Seattle Man Sentenced for Attempting to Join ISIS

  • Elvin Hunter Bgorn Williams, 22, from Seattle, Wash. was sentenced to four years in prison plus 15 years of supervised release for his efforts to join ISIS.

  • In May 2021, Williams obtained a passport and pawned a laptop computer to raise funds for his travel. In early May 2021, Williams booked an airline ticket from Seattle to Amsterdam and on to Egypt to join ISIS. Read Now

Exclusive: Clarion Reports ISIS Activists to Police

  • The Clarion Intelligence Network has recently identified several supporters of the terrorist group ISIS and has reported them to our law enforcement partners.

  • Clarion has recently uncovered an ISIS supporter living in California who was seeking to commit an attack on the LGBT community.

  • Help us identify and track more extremists on American soil. Donate Here

Alt-Right & Alt-Left Extremism

Robert Aristotle Pandolfi

Robert Aristotle Pandolfi via NewsChannel 10 KDFA screenshot

Aryan Brotherhood Gang Member Sentenced

  • Robert Aristotle Pandolfi, a 51-year-old California man living in Texas, was sentenced this week to 20 years in federal prison.
  • Pandolfi pleaded guilty in July to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine across state lines.
  • Pandolfi was a confirmed member of the Aryan Brotherhood prison gang. Read More

Neo-Nazis Protest Drag Show

  • A group of men carrying Nazi flags and performing Hitler salutes protested in Lakeland, Fla. outside an event that featured drag performances.
  • The neo-Nazi group “NatSoc Florida (NSF)” is claiming responsibility for the protest.  The same group protested outside the conservative group Turning Point USA’s Student Action Summit in Tampa, Fla. earlier this year. Read More

Leader of Oath Keepers Found Guilty

  • Elmer Stewart Rhodes III, the founder and leader of the Oath Keepers, and Kelly Meggs, the leader of the Florida chapter of the organization, were found guilty of seditious conspiracy and other charges related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol in January 2021.
  • The charges of seditious conspiracy, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of an official proceeding, and tampering with documents or proceedings each carry a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. Read More

Antifa Member Arrested and Released

  • A Portland Antifa member, Jarrid Huber, 23, who had been considered a wanted dangerous fugitive earlier in November, has been arrested and released without bail.  
  • Huber was arrested on November 30 for a litany of charges including felonious criminal mischief, arson and rioting stemming from a May 25, 2021 incident.
  • Huber had been on the run for weeks for violating pretrial release conditions by returning to allegedly riot. Read More

Kanye West Praises Hitler

  • The rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, recently went on an antisemitic rant during an appearance on the controversial far-right commentator Alex Jone’s Infowars program.
  • Ye appeared on the program along with white nationalist Nick Fuentes, who made headlines when he accompanied Ye to a dinner at Mar-a-Lago with former President Trump last week.
  • Many of Ye’s references toward Jews align with the beliefs of the Black Hebrew Israelites that Blacks are the real Biblical chosen people and that Jews are imposters and thieves. Read More

Jane’s Revenge Threatens to Shoot Pro-Lifers

  • Authorities in Omaha, Neb., are investigating two threatening letters allegedly tied to the pro-abortion group Jane’s Revenge that were sent to a Catholic-affiliated center and a local Christian church. 
  • One letter threatened to “shoot up your Newman Center with our new AR-14 rifles” if an abortion ban is passed. Read More

School Threats

Rock Hill School District school buses

Rock Hill School District school buses via WSAZ NewsChannel 3 screenshot

Teen Girl Arrested for Bomb Threats

  • A 16-year-old girl from Rock Hill, N.C. was arrested in connection with recent bomb threats made toward the Rock Hill School District.
  • The girl, who’s a Rock Hill student, faces four counts of delinquency by making terroristic threats and four counts of delinquency by inducing panic. Read More

Baltimore County Police Increase Presence at Towson School Following Threat

  • Baltimore County Police will continue their increased presence at Towson High School after an email threat.
    This is the second time the school has received a threat within a month. Read More

Hostile Foreign Influence Operations

Iranian Women

Iranian woman attending a gathering in Tehran to mark the anniversary of the seizure of the U.S. embassy on November 4 - Morteza Nikoubazl/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Alabama Man Indicted for Smuggling Goods to Iran

  • Ray Hunt, 69, of Madison County, Ala., was indicted on federal offenses related to an illegal scheme to export U.S.-origin goods to Iran.
  • Hunt conspired to export U.S.-origin parts used in the oil and gas industry, including control valves and oil tubing, through his Alabama-based company, Vega Tools LLC, to customers in Iran.
  • Hunt faces a maximum penalty of up to 20 years in prison and up to a $1 million fine. Read More

Federal Watchdog Warns DoD Has No Policy to Track Attempted Cyber Attacks

  • The Government Accountability Office (GAO), a federal investigatory group, recently determined the Pentagon has failed to put in place policies to track attempted cyberattacks by Russia, China, Iran, and other malicious hackers.  
  • Hackers have attempted to penetrate computer systems belonging to the Defense Department with more than 1,500 cyberattacks per year, and the Pentagon is often not properly logging attacks or reporting them to leadership. Read More

Research and Trends in Extremism

DHS Officer

DHS officer - Yasin Ozturk/Anadolu Agency via Getty Image

Homeland Security Warns of Heightened Threat Environment

  • The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) warned of a “heightened threat environment” across the country in its latest terrorism advisory bulletin.
  • DHS expects the threat environment to remain heightened over the coming months. Read More

Antisemitic Hate Crimes in New York City Jump by 125%

  • According to NYPD data, antisemitic hate crimes in New York City more than doubled last month from a year ago.
  • The five boroughs had 45 antisemitic crimes in November compared to 20 in November 2021.
    Read More

QUOTABLE
"In questions of power, then, let no more be heard of confidence in man, but bind him down from mischief by the chains of the Constitution."


-Thomas Jefferson

NOTE TO OUR READERS: We have pulled out the salient points of the articles in this newsletter to keep you informed and focused on the most relevant, important and timely news in national security and extremism. While our national security experts stand behind the summary bullets and deem them trustworthy, Clarion Project does not endorse all the views expressed in the articles linked.

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