Eye on Extremism: August 13, 2026
Top Stories
Reuters: After US criticism, Israel ties Lebanon withdrawal to Hezbollah disarmament
Israel won’t withdraw from southern Lebanon until Hezbollah is disarmed, the defence minister said on Thursday, qualifying remarks he made a day earlier that had suggested Israeli forces would occupy the territory indefinitely and drew U.S. criticism.
More than 80% of antisemitic social-media posts reported by Jewish community members across Europe remained online, according to a World Jewish Congress study that found reporting content to platforms had little effect on whether it was removed.
CEP Mentions
“If this [reform] would be enacted, we would be on par with other intelligence services in other EU countries,” said Hans-Jakob Schindler, senior director of the Counter Extremism Project, a non-profit organisation based in London, New York and Berlin.
WELT TV: INTELLIGENCE REFORM: Security expert explains! Is Germany becoming a surveillance state?
Security expert Hans-Jakob Schindler explains what new powers are planned, what obstacles exist, and why legal challenges before the Federal Constitutional Court are to be expected. He also assesses how the oversight of the intelligence services will be structured in the future and identifies potential risks.
Analysis
Iran International: All Mojtaba’s men: Old guard shapes Iran’s new order
Iran's unseen supreme leader has issued his first military decrees, raising a central question about the emerging order under Mojtaba Khamenei: is he tightening his grip on power, or relying on the old security establishment to shore up his authority?
United States
It has been less than a week since Abelardo de la Espriella became president of Colombia, and he is already giving signs that his government and that of Donald Trump are planning much closer ties. Gone are the days of confrontation with the leftist ex-president Gustavo Petro. Washington DC now sees Bogotá as an ally. In this context, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Wednesday announced that he has been authorized by De la Espriella’s government to conduct joint military operations on Colombian territory, a decision that carries major consequences for the South American country.
CNN: Former employee at Southern Poverty Law Center arrested on fraud charges
A former employee of the Southern Poverty Law Center has been arrested in California on charges that she oversaw secret payments to informants inside of White supremacist groups, one of whom she was allegedly living with and had a romantic relationship with at the time. The woman, Heidi Beirich, previously ran the SPLC’s project tracking hate groups in the US. The Justice Department has alleged that the program, which is no longer running, defrauded donors who did not realize they were helping to pay individuals inside the same groups that the SPLC aimed to root out.
Times of Israel: Richard Priem: The ‘age of security’ has ended for US Jews
The Dutch-born CEO of the Community Security Service aims to empower a volunteer force of American Jews by giving them the tools to prevent and de-escalate terrorism at home.
29 News: Heather Heyer Way closure marks nine years since her murder in white supremacist attack
Heather Heyer Way, a portion of 4th Steet in Downtown Charlottesville, was closed on Wednesday, August 12, to mark nine years since Heyer was murdered during the Unite the Right rally. The closure ran from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Associated Press: As Abdul El-Sayed breaks a barrier, anti-Muslim vitriol surges on multiple fronts
Abdul El-Sayed made history this month in Michigan by becoming the first Muslim nominated by the Democratic Party to run for the U.S. Senate. But elation among many of his fellow Muslim Americans was tempered by awareness of persisting and widespread anti-Muslim sentiment across much of the nation.
KOSU: Stitt orders investigation, possible terrorist designation for Oklahoma Muslim groups
Gov. Kevin Stitt wants Oklahoma’s chapters of the Muslim Brotherhood and the Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR, to be investigated as potential threats in the state.
Jewish Insider: Nevada GOP candidate took max-out contribution from ‘Protocols’-promoting activist
David Flippo, the Republican nominee in Nevada’s 2nd Congressional District, accepted a max-out donation from Robert Beadles, a prominent local GOP donor and commentator who has repeatedly promoted the Protocols of the Elders of Zion and other antisemitic conspiracy theories.
A 21-year-old Colorado man pleaded guilty on Wednesday to a single federal charge of attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization after he planned to travel to Iraq to join the Islamic State group at age 18.
A third of the content posted to Dan Bilzerian’s campaign account is antisemitic hate speech, a new investigation by Combat Antisemitism Movement’s Antisemitism Research Center (ARC) has shown.
Germany
Politico: ‘That wasn’t my son’: Mother of Berlin Pride attacker confronts his turn to terror
The woman whose son brought terror to Berlin is sitting on a worn red leather couch in a three-room apartment in Berlin’s Tiergarten district. It is Thursday afternoon, and she is pointing to the several missed calls on her phone screen. They are all from the evening of July 25. They are all from the same person: Abdul Ballout, her son.
Reuters: German police: suspicious object on rail tracks did not contain explosives
German police said on Thursday that a suspicious object found on rail tracks in a Bavarian town did not contain explosives, as initially feared. Earlier on Thursday, buildings near the object were evacuated in the town of Treuchtlingen for the item to be moved safely by a robot.
Deutsche Welle: Germany news: Far-right leader backs left-wing populist
The leader of the far-right AfD in Thuringia, Björn Höcke, has offered to back populist Sahra Wagenknecht as state premier.
Italy
Jerusalem Post: French Jewish tourist wearing kippah attacked twice in two days in Rome
A 22-year-old French Jewish tourist wearing a kippah was targeted in back-to-back antisemitic assaults in Rome last Friday and Saturday, sparking widespread outrage and swift condemnation from Italian political leaders and Jewish community figures.
Poland
The Telegraph: The pro-Russian extremists on track to be kingmakers in Polish politics
Nearly three years ago, Grzegorz Braun turned a fire extinguisher on menorah candles lit for Hanukkah inside Poland’s parliament building. The far-Right politician dismissed celebrations of the Jewish festival as “acts of satanic worship” as he sprayed white foam across the lobby.
United Kingdom
The Telegraph: Restore activists support ‘neo-Nazi’ in Clacton by-election
Restore Britain activists have been accused of endorsing a “neo-Nazi” candidate in the Clacton by-election. Senior party organisers have supported the campaign of Kai Stephens for the British Democrats.
Searchlight: ‘Secret’ Aryan Front leader reveals real name and two terrorism charges in online rant
The secretive leader of Aryan Front, whose identity has not previously been made public, is facing terrorism charges. Jared Allpress, from Dewsbury, who styles himself as the founder and leader of the organisation, revealed his role during a neo-nazi group conversation on an X Space last week. He also disclosed that he is facing trial on two terrorism charges.
Afghanistan
New York Times: Afghanistan’s Unhappy Anniversary
The Taliban took over Afghanistan five years ago this week. They pushed out the world’s most powerful army. Yet the mood among Taliban officials I’ve spoken with and soldiers I’ve bumped into at checkpoints hasn’t exactly been celebratory — more like embattled.
Arab News: UN says Taliban support fueled deadlier attacks in Pakistan in last six months
The Afghan Taliban’s support for the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) fueled deadlier attacks in Pakistan in the last six months, a United Nations Security Council-mandated monitoring group said this week, adding that the militant threat emanating from Afghanistan remained “largely unchanged.”
Afghanistan International: Taliban Mayor Of Faizabad Killed In Badakhshan Attack, Says NRF
The National Resistance Front said the Taliban-appointed mayor of Faizabad in Badakhshan was killed in an attack by its forces. The group said the mayor’s guards were also killed. Local sources had earlier reported an explosive attack on a vehicle carrying the Taliban mayor in Faizabad.
Afghanistan International: Taliban Launches Air Strikes On Juma Khan Fateh’s Positions In Badakhshan
Local sources told Afghanistan International on Thursday, 13 August, that Taliban helicopters bombed positions held by Juma Khan Fateh’s fighters near the centre of Nusay district in Badakhshan. According to the sources, two Taliban helicopters struck Fateh’s positions in the Jisang area at around 11 am on Thursday.
Reuters: Human Rights Watch urges Taliban to release detained UN, NGO staff
Human Rights Watch called for the release of two UN staffers and six NGO workers in Afghanistan following a string of Taliban detentions in recent weeks. HRW said on Wednesday that six male staff working with the Women and Children Legal Research Foundation (WCLRF) had been “forcibly disappeared” from the NGO’s Kabul office last month. The NGO has been involved in aid programmes and advocacy on women's and children's rights, HRW said.
Afghanistan International: Opposition Groups Remain Divided, Says Taliban Spokesperson
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid says opposition groups are divided and pursue different goals, rejecting a political settlement with them and saying their return to power could take Afghanistan back to past conditions.
Afghanistan International: Fighting Continues in Badakhshan As Gunfire Heard Through Nusay District
As fighting intensifies between Taliban forces and fighters loyal to Juma Khan Fateh in Badakhshan, local sources say scattered gunfire has been heard in the centre of Nusay district since Thursday morning. At the same time, residents of Taloqan, the capital of Takhar province, reported seeing a large convoy of Taliban intelligence forces heading towards Badakhshan.
Afghanistan International: 5 Taliban Fighters Killed, 16 Wounded & 5 Missing In Nusay Clashes
Journalist Sami Yousafzai, citing Taliban officials in Badakhshan, reported that five Taliban members were killed and 16 wounded in clashes with forces loyal to Juma Khan Fateh in Nusay district. Yousafzai said at least five Taliban fighters were also missing.
Gaza Strip/West Bank
Hamas plans to participate in the upcoming Palestinian elections, a senior official from the Iran-backed terrorist organization told Hamas-operated Al-Aqsa TV on Wednesday.
After the IDF reportedly ordered the evacuation of Palestinians from 15 homes in the West Bank village of Qusra, the military backtracks on the move, saying that no Palestinians will be moved from their homes as troops operate in the village, after settlers set up an outpost in the area.
Settlers remained near besieged homes in the Palestinian village of Qusra in the West Bank on Thursday, as US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee slammed the extremists as “Israeli terrorists” and said that Israeli security forces were in the area at the US Embassy’s request.
The Israeli Air Force on Thursday attacked a Gazan terror cell in Khan Yunis, the second “attack of choice” in two days after a pause in such attacks since a new US-Hamas deal in late July.
Times of Israel: IDF says Hamas operative killed in first Gaza airstrike in over a week
The Israeli military said it struck and killed a Hamas commander in the northern Gaza Strip on Wednesday, the first Israeli airstrike in the territory in more than a week, breaking a lull that had taken hold as the US-backed Board of Peace presses its plan for the disarmament of the war-torn enclave and the withdrawal of Israeli troops.
Reporters Without Borders, or Reporters Sans Frontières (RSF), has been caught removing at least two Gazan terrorists from its database and list of Palestinian media workers slain in the October 7 War, after they had previously been identified as journalists by the Paris-based media rights non-profit.
Iran
Iran International: Iran seals dozens of businesses in renewed hijab crackdown
Iranian authorities have sealed at least 42 cafés, restaurants, shops, sports clubs and other businesses across the country in the past three weeks, over compulsory hijab rules and what officials describe as violations of Islamic norms. The figure is based on individual closure cases reported separately by state media and rights groups.
IranWire: IRGC Ship Attack Causes Oil Spill Near Qeshm Island
TankerTrackers has identified the cargo vessel Minoan Pioneer as the likely source of a major oil slick along the coast of Qeshm Island using satellite imagery. The vessel was previously targeted near the Strait of Hormuz. According to TankerTrackers, leaked petroleum products drifted through the Strait of Hormuz into Iranian waters, washing up on Qeshm’s southern shores. The tracking firm described the return of the pollution to Iranian territory as a self-inflicted blow (“own goal”) by the Islamic Republic.
IranWire: Donald Trump: The IRGC Is Shattered and Its Troops Are Fleeing
U.S. President Donald Trump posted a message on Truth Social on Wednesday, August 12, asserting that the United States maintains “total control” over the Strait of Hormuz and will likely retain it. He further stated that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is “shattered,” its forces are fleeing, and the status of Iran's leadership is “uncertain at best.” In his post, Trump wrote: “The U.S. has total control over the Strait of Hormuz. I think we will keep it.” Referring to the U.S. naval blockade against Iran, he added that it is widely referred to as a “wall of steel” and that “there is nothing Iran can do to counter it.”
Iran International: Iran could prolong war to outlast Trump, IRGC adviser says
A senior adviser to the commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said Tehran could deliberately prolong the war until US President Donald Trump leaves office to wear down its adversaries and deter future attacks. “One way is to prolong this war until we get to the next term of the presidency and cause attrition, so that if anyone else wants to attack Iran, they will know there is a cost,” Mohammad Reza Naghdi told PBS NewsHour on Tuesday.
Israel
Times of Israel: Israel arrests three Palestinians it says were planning an imminent terror attack
Three wanted Palestinians who were allegedly planning an imminent terror attack were captured by Israeli forces in the West Bank city of Jenin overnight, according to Israeli security authorities.
Lebanon
A Lebanese official denied on Thursday a Reuters report that Beirut had agreed with Israel to a shortlist of countries that could send troops to Lebanon to verify the disarmament of Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, and said it was following up on the issue with Washington.
Yemen
Clashes between Iran-backed Houthi rebels and government forces in Yemen raged overnight Thursday as renewed violence continues to spread and feed growing fears that the country’s civil war could reignite and create a new front in the Middle East war.
Iran International: Houthis say they targeted Aramco refinery in Saudi Arabia with drones
Yemen’s Houthis said on Thursday they targeted an Aramco refinery in Saudi Arabia’s Jizan with two drones, the Houthi-run Saba news agency reported. There was no immediate confirmation from Saudi authorities or Aramco.
U.S. airstrikes targeting Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen last year killed more than 150 civilians, according to a Pentagon review of the attacks, which comes as concerns rise over civilian casualties during military campaigns under the Trump administration.
India
NDTV: Al-Qaeda Offshoot Behind Delhi's Red Fort Blast That Killed 15: UN Report
The Red Fort terror blast in Delhi last year that killed 15 people has now been officially linked to the offshoot Al-Qaeda in the Indian subcontinent (AQIS), the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) body monitoring counter-terrorism sanctions said in its report.
Pakistan
Repair crews were awaiting security clearance on Thursday to restore a major gas pipeline damaged a day earlier in a blast authorities blamed on militants in Pakistan’s insurgency-hit Balochistan province, where security has been tightened ahead of Independence Day.
Sudan
Reuters: RSF renews assault on Sudan's al-Obeid as drones strike capital, witnesses say
The Sudanese Rapid Support Forces renewed its assault on the city of al-Obeid on Wednesday and stepped up drone and land attacks across the country this week following losses on several fronts, according to witnesses.
Australia
Victorian police are investigating allegations that a car was deliberately driven at speed towards a protester taking part in an anti-racism rally in Melbourne last month.
A former Salafi jihadist-turned undercover operative has told the antisemitism royal commission how he became radicalised after an encounter with the Taliban. After radicalising as a young man, Mubinoddin Shaikh became disillusioned with extremism following the 9/11 terror attacks.
More than half of Australians have lost confidence that people of all faiths can live safely in the country following the Bondi Beach Hanukkah massacre, according to new research conducted on behalf of the Combat Antisemitism Movement (CAM).
Technology
404Media: The Government is Monitoring Anti-Flock TikTok and Instagram Accounts
Government surveillance centers are monitoring viral anti-Flock Instagram posts, warning local police about upcoming DeFlock events including one scheduled to start next week, and have told cops to “increase patrols around ALPR [automatic license plate readers]” as backlash to Flock grows, according to government intelligence bulletins obtained using public records requests. The documents also warn about devices “that could be used to identify the locations of Flock cameras.”
In recent days, media reports have revealed several instances where Facebook has paid for content that could be deemed controversial. ABC News Verify found Facebook had monetised Australian accounts described as having white nationalist, neo-Nazi or anti-vaccine links. According to the report, some of the content they posted even appeared to conflict with Meta’s own monetisation policies.
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