US government warns of ‘unprecedented articulated threats’ against law enforcement

August 15, 2022 by 4 Comments

FBIA SECURITY BULLETIN ISSUED jointly by the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) warns of a growing number of “articulated threats” against law enforcement. The bulletin connects these threats with the recent execution by the FBI of a search warrant at the Florida residence of former US President Donald Trump. Several US-based media, which have accessed the bulletin, described the volume of threats against law enforcement and other government personnel as “unprecedented”.

The bulletin, issued on Friday, said known threats were “occurring primarily online and across multiple platforms” in the social media ecosphere. Most threats were general in nature, and included calls for a civil war and an armed rebellion against the US government. The bulletin warned, however, that alongside general threats FBI and DHS agents were investigating “multiple articulated threats and calls for the targeted killing of judicial law enforcement and government officials”. Among those threats, some were “specific in identifying proposed targets and tactics, as well weaponry”, the bulletin added. At least one case involved a targeted threat to “place a so-called Dirty Bomb in front of FBI headquarters” in downtown Washington, DC. The term ‘dirty bomb’ refers to an improvised nuclear weapon consisting of conventional explosives and radioactive nuclear waste material.

There was particular concern over the weekend for the safety of those FBI special agents and other government officials, whose names appear on the official government documentation that relates to the search of Trump’s residence. The names of several FBI special agents were reportedly being circulated across online forums last week, while pro-Trump activists have vowed to publicize the personal information of dozens of FBI employees. An armed man who tried to storm the FBI field office in Cincinnati, OH, was shot dead on Thursday, following a car chase and gun battle with law enforcement personnel. Meanwhile, a group of armed protesters gathered on Saturday outside the FBI field office in Phoenix, AZ, but eventually dispersed without incident.

The bulletin warns that domestic violent extremists (DVEs) could potentially target “individuals implicated in conspiracy theories and perceived ideological opponents who challenge their worldview”. It adds that high profile DVE attacks in the coming weeks may inspire copycat actions, while the emergence of new conspiracy theories could add more fuel to the fire. The bulletin concludes by viewing the upcoming 2022 midterm election as “an additional flashpoint” around which DVEs could “escalate threats against perceived ideological opponents, including federal law enforcement personnel”.

► Author: Joseph Fitsanakis | Date: 15 August 2022 | Permalink

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FBI warns some QAnon online supporters plan to transition to ‘real-world violence’

June 15, 2021 by Leave a comment

QAnon - IA

A NEW INTELLIGENCE REPORT warns that some supporters of the QAnon conspiracy theory, who in the past have limited their activities to the online domain, may now be transitioning to “real-world violence”. The unclassified report (pdf) was co-produced by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Homeland Security. It was released on Monday by Senator Martin Heinrich (D-NM), who called for coordinated action to protect national security from QAnon militants.

Adherents of the QAnon conspiracy theory view former President Donald Trump as a central figure in a behind-the-scenes battle against a sinister cabal of enemies, known as the “deep state”. According to the QAnon theory, Trump’s first term in office would culminate in a victory against this “deep state”. The latter is believed by QAnon conspiracy theorists to consist of Satan-worshiping cannibals who traffic children for sex. These cannibals would be routed during “The Storm”, a final reckoning between Trump and the “deep state”, which would result in the arrest and execution of all “deep state” officials.

When Trump failed to get re-elected last year, some QAnon adherents attempted to bring about “The Storm” by joining the mob who attached the US Capitol Complex —an unprecedented violent action that resulted in the death of five people. According to the Associated Press, at least 20 QAnon adherents have so far been charged with federal crimes relating to the January 6 attack on the US Capitol.

The new intelligence report by the FBI and the DHS warns that, frustrated by Trump’s departure from the office of the presidency, some QAnon adherents, including leading figures in the movement, are now promoting a new conspiracy theory. According to this new theory, Trump is now operating as a “shadow president” who is continuing his secret battle against the Satan-worshiping cannibals. The latter purportedly include President Joe Biden and most senior Democrats in office, who will eventually be unseated by Trump and his movement.

Not all QAnon adherents believe in this new theory, according to the report. Indeed, some supporters of QAnon are feeling disillusioned and are now “pulling back”, after realizing that they can no longer “trust the plan” spelled out by Q —the mysterious figure that supposedly is at the center of the QAnon theory. This is not necessarily good news, however, according to the report. This is because some disillusioned QAnon supporters are now deciding that, rather than waiting for Q’s promised actions to occur, they should act to make them happen.

These QAnon supporters believe that they must no longer limit their role in the movement to simply being “digital soldiers” in support of Q. Instead, they are now “pivoting” toward “engaging in real-world violence”, the report suggests. This newfound role includes planning actions that aim to physically harm “perceived members of the ‘cabal’ such as Democrats and other political opposition”, the report warns.

► Author: Ian Allen | Date: 15 June 2021 | Permalink

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US Homeland Security Department unveils new domestic counter-terrorism branch

May 12, 2021 by Leave a comment

DHS

THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT of Homeland Security has unveiled plans to establish a dedicated counter-terrorism branch within its intelligence wing, as part of a broader push to focus on domestic violent threats. In a statement published on Tuesday, the DHS said the new domestic counter-terrorism branch will be bringing together “several full-time personnel” under its Office of Intelligence and Analysis (OIA).

According to the statement, the new branch will aim to “ensure DHS develops the expertise necessary to produce the sound, timely intelligence needed to combat threats posed by domestic terrorism and targeted violence”. In a related move, the DHS also announced plans this week to implement a new strategy of “gathering and analyzing intelligence about security threats from public social media posts”. The purpose of the new strategy will be to establish an early-warning mechanism that will take into account the kinds of social media posts that preceded the attack on the US Capitol Complex on January 6 of this year.

In addition to its new OIA branch, the DHS said it will dissolve its controversial Office of Targeted Violence and Terrorism Prevention, which was set up during the administration of President Donald Trump. Critics have accused the Trump-era outfit of failing to focus on domestic far-right militancy for political reasons. It will now be rebranded as the Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships, and will rely on outside expertise to identify and mitigate sources of domestic radicalism. According to DHS, the new center will “gauge the threat people may face based on behavioral assessments, rather than ideology”.

► Author: Joseph Fitsanakis | Date: 12 May 2021 | Permalink

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Domestic extremism quickly ‘metastasizing’, US intelligence report warns

March 18, 2021 by Leave a comment

US Capitol

A MAJOR INTELLIGENCE REPORT produced for the United States Congress and the White House warns that violent extremism by ethnically and racially motivated militants is “metastasizing”, and “will almost certainly” result in further attacks in 2021. The report was produced by the National Counterterrorism Center of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, in cooperation with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Homeland Security. A declassified version of the report was released online, shortly after the White House and Congress were given a classified briefing on the matter.

The report —the first of its kind to be issued after the January 6 attack on the US Capitol Complex, points to threats from several strains of domestic violent extremism, ranging from environmental activists to animal rights extremists, anarchists and adherents of far-right ideologies. It states, however, that by far the greatest threat to public security is presented by ethnically and racially motivated violent extremists, in combination with armed militias. These groups “will almost certainly” grow more active in the coming months, due to a number of economic, political and social factors. Their members are feeling emboldened following the January 6 attacks, and social media are allowing these groups to expand their presence among the population. Widespread conspiracy theories about last November’s presidential elections are also fueling rightwing armed militancy, according to the report.

The same can be said about the economic pressures caused by the coronavirus pandemic and associated lockdowns, which anti-government extremists view as the imposition of tyranny by a government that should be overthrown. These kinds of social disruptions “will almost certainly” fuel further violence this year, according to the report. Members of domestic extremist organizations are currently exchanging ideas on methods of violence, and devising “innovations in targeting and attack tactics”, it adds. Additionally, white supremacist groups appear to rely on “the most persistent and concerning transnational connections” of any type of domestic violent extremist organizations.

► Author: Joseph Fitsanakis | Date: 18 March 2021 | Permalink

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Senior Homeland Security officials resign, reportedly under White House pressure

November 13, 2020 by Leave a comment

Department of Homeland Security DHS

TWO SENIOR OFFICIALS AT the United States Department of Homeland Security have resigned, reportedly after coming under pressure to do by the White House. The resignations may point to the latest incidents in an ongoing string of firings and resignations in the US intelligence and national security communities, part of a concerted effort by President Donald Trump.

The more senior of the two DHS officials who have resigned as of today is Bryan Ware, DHS assistant director for cybersecurity. Ware served at the DHS’s cybersecurity wing, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). CISA was created by the Trump administration two years ago, when the president signed into law the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Act. The mission of the young agency is to streamline cybersecurity efforts across government agencies and departments, in order to improve the government’s cybersecurity protections.

Ware’s resignation coincided with a rare announcement by top officials at CISA, which called the US presidential election of November 3 “the most secure in American history”. The officials, who are members of the Election Infrastructure Government Coordinating Council (GCC) Executive Committee, added that “[t]here is no evidence that any voting system deleted or lost votes, changed votes or was in any way compromised”. The announcement appeared to be a refutation of claims made by President Trump and his supporters that the election was marred by significant irregularities.

The DHS assistant secretary for international affairs, Valerie Boyd, also resigned as of today. In her resignation letter, Boyd states that her “belief that people of character should support the institution of the Presidency […] has been tested many times these past few years”. In his farewell letter to colleagues, Ware states that his departure from the DHS came “too soon”, indicating that the decision to resign was not his own. Several sources suggest that both Ware and Boyd were pressured to resign by White House aides close to President Trump.

Reporters said last night that officials at the White House, the DHS and the CISA did not respond to requests for comment about the two DHS officials’ resignations. There were also rumors last night that CISA director, Chris Krebs, would be fired by President Trump in a matter of days.

► Author: Ian Allen | Date: 13 November 2020 | Permalink

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US official who penned anonymous 2018 New York Times article reveals his identity

October 29, 2020 by 1 Comment

Miles Taylor

A UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT official, who in 2018 wrote an anonymous editorial in The New York Times claiming to be part of a secret group of insiders trying to thwart President Donald Trump’s policies, has revealed his identity. The September 2018 editorial raised eyebrows in Washington for claiming that “many Trump appointees have vowed to […] thwart Mr. Trump’s more misguided impulses until he is out of office”. The president called the article treasonous and urged the Department of Justice to investigate its source.

In 2019, the same government official published a book, titled The Warning, with the author identified only as “Anonymous — a senior Trump administration official”. In the months that followed there was intense speculation in Washington about the identity of the author. The list of possible candidates included Vice President Mike Pence, then-United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, and a host of senior officials in the Department of Defense.

On Wednesday, the anonymous author voluntarily revealed his identity. He is Miles Taylor, a Trump appointee, who served in various posts in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) from 2017 until 2019. When he left the DHS, Taylor was serving as Chief of Staff to DHS Acting Secretary Chad Wolf. He had previously served as Chief of Staff to DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen. In August of this year, Taylor became the highest-ranking former member of the Trump administration to endorse Joe Biden for president. He now works as Head of National Security for Google.

The revelation prompted an immediate response from the White House, with the president’s press secretary Kayleigh McEnany describing Taylor as “low-level, disgruntled former staffer”. Speaking at a rally in the US state of Arizona, President Trump called Taylor a “sleazebag” and “a low-level lowlife that I don’t know”. However, the Associated Press reported late on Wednesday that “as DHS chief of staff, Taylor was in many White House meetings with the president on his border policy and other major Homeland Security issues”.

► Author: Joseph Fitsanakis | Date: 29 October 2020 | Permalink

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US intelligence reports warn of political violence during presidential election

September 30, 2020 by 1 Comment

Jared MaplesIntelligence reports by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and other American security agencies warn that domestic extremists are preparing to wage violence in November, with one official calling the situation a “witch’s brew” that could spell unprecedented chaos throughout the country.

Security agencies have issued numerous reports warning of possible election violence in recent months, with the majority of these warnings coming from the FBI and the DHS. Earlier this month, Yahoo News reported sobering passages from a security alert issued jointly by the two agencies, which saw an increasing likelihood of election-related violence by domestic extremists. According to Yahoo News, the warning focused on domestic violent extremists “across the ideological spectrum”, who were likely to “continue to plot against government and election-related targets to express their diverse grievances involving government policies and actions”.

Last month a similar report from the DHS said law enforcement personnel should anticipate rapid mobilization by ideologically driven violent extremists, who are preparing to wage violence in the run-up to the November election, as well after. Until recently, the FBI and DHS reports had been circulated internally and were made available mostly to government personnel. Last week, however, New Jersey’s Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness (NJ OHSP) took the rare step of issuing public warnings relating to possible election violence.

In a statement, the NJ OHSP said that Americans should remain vigilant as the November elections approach. The statement includes comments by OHSP director Jared Maples (pictured), who warns that the country is facing “a witch’s brew that really hasn’t happened in America’s history. And if it has, it’s been decades if not centuries”. The elements of this instability include the coronavirus pandemic, growing civil unrest, rising political tensions between rival groups, as well as concerted disinformation campaigns from America’s foreign adversaries, according to the NJ OHSP.

► Author: Joseph Fitsanakis | Date: 30 September 2020 | Permalink

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