(New York, N.Y.) – On Monday, U.K. Home Secretary Ptiti Patel announced plans to ban The Base, a U.S.-based neo-Nazi, white supremacist network, pending approval of the order by the British parliament. The terrorist proscription could go into effect later this week and would make membership or support for The Base a terrorism offense with a penalty of up to 14 years in prison. Speaking on the ban, Patel stated, “We continue to take robust action against evil white supremacist groups, who target vulnerable people across the world to join in their hateful ideologies and their sick promotion of violence.” The decision to proscribe The Base came after a recommendation from the Proscription Review Group, which brings together experts from across the U.K. government to determine risks posed by extremist groups.
The Base describes itself as an “international survivalist and self-defense network” that seeks to train their members for fighting a race war. Since it’s founding, the network has been active in North America, Europe, South Africa, and Australia. The present transnational reach of the organization outside of the United States is unknown. The Base is an accelerationist group that encourages the onset on anarchy so it can then “impose order from chaos.” The Base’s recruitment propaganda claims it trains its members for a “hypothetical time in the future when law & order breaks down to such an extreme degree … that the authorities are unable or unwilling to restore it.”
The Base heavily draws inspiration from the Atomwaffen Division (AWD) and Siege, the neo-Nazi manifesto written by James Mason that inspired Atomwaffen Division. The exact relationship between AWD and The Base remains unclear beyond inspiration. The Base’s membership reportedly includes members of AWD and the far-right group Eco-Fascist Order.
The Base has not yet claimed responsibility for violent acts, but it has organized military training camps across North America. Founder Roman Wolf, a.k.a. Rinaldo Nazzaro, and several other members claimed to have served in the U.S. or Canadian militaries and used those skills to train other members of The Base in weaponry and combat. Alleged Base leader Justen Watkins set up a Base training camp in Michigan in 2019. In April 2021, Nazzaro denied that Base members ever discussed or planned attacks. He accused media organizations like Vice and non-government organizations of misrepresenting The Base.
To read the Counter Extremism Project (CEP)’s The Base resource, please click here.
To read CEP’s United Kingdom resource, please click here.
To read CEP’s Rinaldo Nazzaro resource, please click here.