Eye on Extremism: June 18, 2026
Top Stories
Hassan Khomeini, grandson of the founder of the Islamic regime, Ruhollah Mostafavi Musavi Khomeini, hailed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) as a major “victory” for Tehran, promising that the “greater jihad” would now begin, according to a speech aired by state media earlier this week.
Reuters: Explosions, sustained gunfire in attack at Niger airport
Soldiers in Niger searched for militants around the airport and military airbase in the capital Niamey on Thursday after explosions and sustained gunfire were heard in what a security source described as an apparent attack on the facility. The situation appeared mostly calm by noon (1100 GMT), with only sporadic fire possibly linked to the army's sweeping operations, a Reuters witness and two residents said, noting that security forces had blocked off the area.
CEP Mentions
On June 21, 2026, Altman will launch her newest exhibition titled Ground Glass, which honors the life and work of Holocaust victim Lore Sternfeld (1915-1943), a precision engineer who made camera lenses for Astro-Berlin, the same company whose lenses were used by Nazi propagandists. The exhibition will be on display at the former home of Auschwitz commandant Rudolf Höss—now called the Auschwitz Research Center on Hate, Extremism and Radicalization—an initiative by The Counter Extremism Project that focuses on education, research, and art as a means of inspiring intervention over apathy in the face of extreme ideology.
Jewish Journal: From Beverly Hills to Capitol Hill: Three American Jews Honored
Broidy now co-chairs, alongside philanthropist Dr. Thomas Kaplan, the Fund to End Antisemitism, Extremism and Hate – the organization behind ARCHER at House 88, the Auschwitz Research Center on Hate, Extremism, and Radicalization. ARCHER was built in collaboration with the Counter Extremism Project, the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum, and UNESCO, and operates inside the former private villa of Commandant Rudolf Höss in Oświęcim, Poland.
ZDF Phoenix Runde: Between relief and skepticism—Trump’s Iran deal
Iran expert Hans-Jakob Schindler joins a panel to discuss the Iran deal.
France 24: Middle East war: a deal worth billions of dollars for Tehran
The consensus that seems to be emerging is that "the terms of the agreement as presented in the media are clearly very much in favor of Iran," summarizes Hans-Jakob Schindler, a former German diplomat stationed in Tehran and director of the Counter Extremism Project, an NGO fighting against extremist movements.
Analysis
For more than two years now, Israel’s growing number of critics abroad have condemned it for what they allege is a reckless and indiscriminate war — with some charging genocide — that has seen tens of thousands killed in Gaza as well as expanding to Lebanon and several other fronts.
The May 2026 attack on the Islamic Center of San Diego reflects an emerging trend in neo-Nazi accelerationist violence. While extremist ideology remains central to this form of violence, the pathways into it are becoming increasingly diffuse and embedded in nihilistic online subcultures.
United States
Reuters: Trump: unfair for Iran to lack ballistic missiles if other countries have them
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that it would be unfair for Iran not to have ballistic missiles if other countries have them. "I'm saying that if other countries have them, it's a little bit unfair for them not to have some," Trump told reporters in Paris.
Reuters: The 14-point US-Iran pact as read by US official
The United States on Wednesday read out the text of the interim U.S.-Iran agreement to halt the war in Iran and open the Strait of Hormuz. The agreement, read to reporters by a senior U.S. official, outlines in 14 points a high-level understanding that defers many of the most difficult issues, such as how to wind down Iran's nuclear program, until a final deal is reached. It paves the way for a broader 60-day negotiation period due to begin in Switzerland on Friday.
The Senate was nearing a resolution to a key hurdle to revive the nation’s most valuable counterterrorism tool, until President Donald Trump blew it up. The last-minute wrench into the Senate’s march toward reauthorizing Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) comes just days after a domestic terror plot was foiled in Washington, D.C.
CNN: Leon Panetta: U.S. 'very vulnerable' to terrorist attack as Trump makes new DNI demand
Leon Panetta joins The Lead.
Fox News: White House UFC terror plot 'ringleader' is a Mexican illegal immigrant, DHS confirms
Abraham Alvarez, identified in federal documents as the alleged "ringleader" of a plot to carry out a mass casualty event at the UFC White House event on June 14, is an illegal immigrant from Mexico who overstayed his visa, according to Homeland Security information first obtained by Fox News Digital.
Suspects who planned to attack the White House over the weekend sought to target lawmakers who received money from pro-Israel groups, according to federal law enforcement officials. Five men were charged on Tuesday for allegedly plotting to kill government officials and others attending the Ultimate Fighting Championship event at the White House on Sunday, the Department of Justice said.
As World Cup soccer fans cheer for their teams in Los Angeles and stadiums across the nation, FBI agents are working in command centers, watching out for unauthorized flying objects. It’s a nerve-racking race against time, and one week into the World Cup, the counter-unmanned aircraft centers have been busy.
West Virginia Public Broadcasting: W.Va. Lawmaker Targeted By Domestic Terrorists
Del. Tristan Leavitt, R-Kanawha, was in Canaan Valley Sunday night for the legislative interim meetings. He watched the WVU baseball game, celebrated Flag Day and called it a day. At the same time, a group of domestic terrorists that planned to attack the UFC fights at the White House in Washington, D.C. added his name to an assassination list. Leavitt was the only state-level West Virginia politician on the list. The state’s congressional delegation members were all named.
Spectrum News 1: Man accused of ties with two terrorist groups arrested and held in Iredell County
man accused of having ties to two Brazilian terrorist organizations is being held in the Iredell County Detention Center, according to the Iredell County Sheriff’s Office. Authorities identified the suspect as Felipe Aquilla, also known as “Don.”
Jerusalem Post: ‘Stupid k***’: Jewish student strangled, assaulted at Colorado school, ADL alleges
An 8th-grade Colorado Jewish student was called a 'stupid k***' while being strangled by a laptop charging cord, in one of many antisemitic assaults by other students described in a Title VI complaint to Boulder Valley Public School District.
Jerusalem Post: San Diego man charged with funneling 'charitable donations' to Hamas terrorists
A San Diego resident was arrested on suspicion of raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for Hamas through fundraising campaigns that appeared to be humanitarian aid efforts for residents of the Gaza Strip, the US Justice Department announced Wednesday.
JTA: Jon Ossoff called his newly minted GOP opponent an antisemite. Why?
After Rep. Mike Collins won a hard-fought Republican runoff election in Georgia Tuesday for the party’s Senate nomination in November, his opponent wasted no time going on the offensive. “Donald Trump’s handpicked candidate Mike Collins is a notorious bigot, antisemite, and extremist,” Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff posted on social media on Tuesday night.
A far-right extremist YouTuber who has said he wants to see “another Hitler” has raised more than $19,000 for a Cornell University student who told a potential employer that he was “not interested in working for a jew.”
NBC 4 Washington: Montgomery Co. candidate pulls ad that included man with 2018 antisemitism ties
In the ad, Montgomery County Councilmember Andrew Friedson, who is Jewish, is pictured walking alongside Joshua Lopez, a longtime D.C. politics insider who was an advisor and campaigner for former Mayor Adrian Fenty and an appointee of Mayor Muriel Bowser.
New York Post: Family-owned raisin company breaks silence over heir’s vile antisemitic outbursts
A family-owned raisin company is distancing itself from one of its heirs after his arrest over a string of racist and antisemitic outbursts in the Pacific Palisades. In a statement Wednesday, Lion Raisins denounced the conduct of family scion Bruce Lion, 64, following reports detailing his repeated verbal attacks against Jewish neighbors.
LebTown: Illinois man charged with making terrorist threats at Union Township business
A 56-year-old Illinois man was charged with making terrorist threats after allegedly threatening to blow up a local business over a repair bill dispute, Cleona Borough police said. Plamen Petrov Dimitrov, of Wheeling, Ill., was a customer at Transteck, 32 Old Forge Road, Jonestown, when on June 11 he became upset over the cost of repairs to his truck, according to police. Dimitrov told an employee he was going to “blow up the building,” police said.
Canada
Iran International: Toronto shooting probe uncovers trail leading to Tehran
A Toronto police operation targeting suspects linked to the March attack on the US Consulate has uncovered what investigators believe is a far-reaching network connecting a series of shootings across the Greater Toronto Area to actors operating beyond Canada's borders.
Colombia
Colombian military forces announced on Wednesday they successfully neutralized five members of the militant group responsible for a devastating bus bombing that killed 20 civilians and left 45 others injured.
Belgium
Afghanistan International: Belgian Foreign Minister Opposes Taliban Delegation’s Visit to Brussels
Maxime Prévot, Belgium’s foreign minister has opposed the EU’s decision to invite Taliban representatives to Brussels, saying he would not accept Belgium inviting them in its own name, Reuters reported. According to Reuters, a spokesperson for Belgium’s Foreign Ministry said Prévot, the country’s foreign minister, “would never accept that the Belgian government, in its own name, invite these individuals for discussions in Belgium.”
Germany
Deutsche Welle: Germany: Reports of antisemitism in 2025 remain high
The 2025 report, published on Wednesday, documents a wide range of incidents collected by RIAS reporting centers across the country throughout the year and classified by the association as antisemitic.
United Kingdom
The Times: Bayreuth cancels Jewish author’s lecture on Wagner’s antisemitism
Bayreuth Festival, the showcase of Wagnerian operas, has been accused of having “contaminated soil” after cancelling an event at which a speaker was to address the composer’s notoriously antisemitic views.
The Telegraph: White supremacists fund Rupert Lowe’s party
White supremacists with links to banned neo-Nazi groups are helping to fund Restore Britain. Rupert Lowe’s party could hold the balance of power in Thursday’s Makerfield by-election by splitting the Right-wing vote with Reform UK, clearing the way for Labour’s Andy Burnham to win.
Afghanistan
Afghanistan International: Taliban Increases Security Presence & Restrictions In Panjshir
Local sources say the Taliban has strengthened its military presence in Panjshir by setting up new security checkpoints and tightening night-time movement restrictions.
Afghanistan International: Vehicle That Hit Girls In Kabul Belonged To Taliban Official, Say Sources
Informed sources tell Afghanistan International that a vehicle which recently hit a group of girls in Kabul belongs to a Taliban official. Some sources say the driver was the son of the Taliban’s Islam Qala customs chief. Informed sources, who asked not to be named for security reasons, said the vehicle was government-owned and belonged to Maulawi Ehsanullah Ehsan, the Taliban official in charge of Islam Qala customs.
Gaza Strip/West Bank
New secret Hamas internal documents have been provided by IDF intelligence to the Meir Amit Terrorism and Intelligence Research Institute, which provided them exclusively to The Jerusalem Post on Thursday.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned on Wednesday that Israeli settler groups could be added to a global blacklist for violations against children as he voiced alarm at a “staggering” rise in violations against Palestinian kids.
AFP: Settlers set fire to two West Bank mosques overnight
Israeli settlers set fire to mosques in two West Bank villages on Wednesday, the local mayors said, while AFP journalists at the site saw signs of arson and vandalism.
Israel
Reuters: Israel issues new Lebanon occupation map, in talks with U.S. over deployment
Israel's military published a map on Thursday showing an expanded zone of control for its troops in southern Lebanon, as Israeli officials told Reuters Israel was holding talks with the U.S. over continuing its deployment. An interim pact signed on Wednesday to end the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran calls for an end to fighting on all fronts, including in Lebanon, and for parties to ensure "the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Lebanon."
The Knesset Constitution, Law, and Justice Committee chairman, MK Simcha Rothman, said on Wednesday that work had begun on the planned court complex in Atarot, where hundreds of terrorists suspected of taking part in the October 7 massacre are expected to stand trial in a proceeding expected to pose extraordinary legal, logistical, and security challenges.
Lebanon
Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem on Wednesday hailed an understanding reached between Tehran and Washington to end the regional war as a “great victory,” calling it a “pivotal point” for Lebanon. Although the US-Iran deal to end the Middle East war has not been officially released, American and Iranian officials, as well as mediator Pakistan, have said it includes Lebanon.
Iran’s interim deal with the US looks set to bolster Hezbollah’s political and financial hand in Lebanon, with Tehran promising more funding for its ally once cash starts to flow, according to four sources familiar with ties between Tehran and the terror group.
Times of Israel: IDF reserve soldier killed, 7 wounded by Hezbollah explosive in southern Lebanon
An IDF reservist soldier was killed, and seven were wounded, including senior officers, by a Hezbollah explosive device in southern Lebanon the day before, the military announced Thursday.
Associated Press: Hezbollah supporters gather at Nasrallah's grave for Ashoura
Hezbollah supporters gathered Wednesday at the grave of former leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut to hear a speech by Hezbollah new leader Sheikh Naim Qassem marking Ashoura, when Shiite Muslims commemorate Imam Hussein, grandson of the Prophet Muhammad.
Naharnet: Qassem calls for 'mutual security' with Israel, rejects disarmament
Hezbollah chief Sheikh Naim Qassem on Wednesday hailed an understanding reached between Tehran and Washington to end the regional war as a "great victory", calling it a "pivotal point" for Lebanon. Although the U.S.-Iran deal to end the Middle East war has not been officially released, American and Iranian officials, as well as mediator Pakistan, have said it includes Lebanon.
Syria
Caliber: ISIS claims responsibility for attack on oil truck in Aleppo countryside
The Islamic State (ISIS) has claimed responsibility for an attack targeting an oil tanker in Syria’s Aleppo countryside, according to monitoring group reports. The attack took place on June 13 in the Manbij area in eastern rural Aleppo and targeted a truck carrying an Iraqi licence plate, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported, adding that the vehicle sustained material damage but no casualties were recorded.
Middle East Online: ISIS steps up Syria attacks amid mounting security challenges
Islamic State militants are intensifying attacks across Syria, targeting security personnel and government institutions in what analysts say is an effort to exploit the country's fragile transition and demonstrate the group's continued relevance despite years of military setbacks.
Turkey
Al-Monitor: Turkey captures alleged ISIS-K media chief near Afghanistan-Pakistan border
Turkey’s National Intelligence Organization has captured an alleged Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISIS-K) media operative accused of trying to enter Turkey to rebuild the group’s recruitment and propaganda network.
Australia
NT News: Sick ‘fascination’: Private schoolboy, army cadet on terror charges after AFP sting
A teenager accused of sharing disturbing videos of innocent people being slaughtered by white supremacists was allegedly busted with an imitation firearm after googling how to print a 3D gun.
Herald Sun: ‘Unacceptable risk’: ISIS bride accused of keeping a sex slave denied bail
An ISIS bride charged with crimes against humanity after allegedly keeping a sex slave will remain behind bars. Zeinab Ahmad, 31, was denied bail on Wednesday afternoon following a four-day fight for freedom that played out in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court.
Technology
The Spectator: The rise of anti-tech terrorism
Sometime after midnight on a Monday in April, a man in Indianapolis emptied 13 rounds into the front door of city-county councilman Ron Gibson. His eight-year-old son was asleep in the house. Tucked under the doormat was a handwritten note. It read: “No Data Centers.” One hesitates to draw grand conclusions from a single individual with a grievance and a firearm. But the note is the thing. The shooter did not want money, or revenge for some private wrong. He wanted, apparently, to register a policy preference about server infrastructure. And he is not, it turns out, alone.
Stay up to date on our latest news.
Get the latest news on extremism and counter-extremism delivered to your inbox.