Eye on Extremism: May 13, 2026
Top Stories
A landmark lawsuit brought by the parents of the first US victim of Hamas could finally stop American groups accused of funneling money to the terror group. David Boim, Brooklyn-born teenager, was gunned down in Jerusalem 30 years ago this week. Parents Joyce and Stanley Boim initially filed a lawsuit at federal court in Chicago in 2000, and it has endured ever since.
Jerusalem Post: Hezbollah planning to occupy Beirut, push out hopes of normalization with Israel
Hezbollah has created a systematic action plan to occupy Beirut in order to push out pragmatic elements, Walla learned on Tuesday. At the same time, the defense establishment is recognizing increasing pressure on Hezbollah Secretary General Naim Qassem, who claimed that Israel is preparing for a move to take over large areas in Lebanon.
CEP Mentions
Deutschlandfunk: Controversial donations – humanitarian aid or terrorist financing?
CEP Senior Director Hans-Jakob Schindler comments on terrorism financing in Germany
Spiegel: How a woman from Düsseldorf helped convicted IS terrorists
Hans-Jakob Schindler, a terrorism expert and Director of the Counter Extremism Project, describes the proceedings as "complex." Nadine D. evidently proceeded with cunning. However, the alleged use of her mother's bank account—among other things—suggests that she was aware of the legal ramifications. "In this case, it was likely not about humanitarian aid, but rather about building a network of sympathizers and strengthening a terrorist organization," says Schindler.
Pakistan TV: EXPERTS CORNER || PAKISTAN STANDS FIRM AGAINST TERRORISM || 12-05-2026
Dr. Hans-Jakob Schindler joins the Experts Corner to discuss the terrorism threat emanating out from Afghanistan.
Analysis
On 27 August 2025, ten police officers, including members of the sexual offences and child investigation team, descended on a property in the regional Victorian town of Porepunkah to serve a search warrant to 56-year-old Dezi Freeman, born Desmond Filby. Freeman allegedly responded by shooting dead senior constables Neal Thompson and Vadim De Waart, and injuring a third officer, before fleeing into the dense bushland. Freeman was reported to identify as a Sovereign Citizen with strong anti-police views. It was also reported that he likely knew the surrounding bushland better than the authorities, borne out by the fact that he was not found again for seven months.
United States
Open Society Foundations, the family philanthropy founded by hedge fund billionaire George Soros, is putting $30 million toward groups fighting antisemitism and anti-Muslim hate over the next three years.
An Iranian citizen pleaded guilty on Tuesday in a New York court to charges including smuggling aliens into the US, at least one of whom had ties to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
The US Department of State has announced a reward of up to USD 15 million for information on financial mechanisms linked to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as part of expanded sanctions and pressure measures targeting Tehran's alleged illicit oil and funding networks amid the conflict in West Asia.
President Donald Trump’s Senior Director for Counterterrorism, Sebastian Gorka, name-dropped former Fox News host Tucker Carlson and controversial commentator Nick Fuentes during an interview after being asked whether the Trump administration was monitoring “right-wing extremism.”
Jewish Insider: Hoyer calls to defeat ‘antisemitism and anti-Zionism in our politics’
Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD), a pro-Israel stalwart and a former House majority leader, said on Tuesday that Jewish Democrats “ought to be” concerned about the critical way that some of their Democratic colleagues talk about Israel. “How many of you here tonight have been trying to convince a family member, a friend, a neighbor not to abandon the party that has long been their political home?” Hoyer said in remarks at the Jewish Democratic Council of America’s annual leadership summit, where he was honored with an award marking his upcoming retirement, after 45 years in Congress.
Jewish Insider: Lawmakers offer dire warnings about rising antisemitism at ADL reception
A series of largely Democratic lawmakers painted an unusually dire portrait of the state of rising antisemitism and threats to the Jewish community in remarks at an Anti-Defamation League reception honoring Jewish American Heritage Month on Capitol Hill on Tuesday evening.
Chronicle of Higher Education: The Fight Over Antisemitism Studies
A new kind of Ph.D. would seem to herald a new field. And it’s not the only indication that antisemitism studies has arrived. New centers, positions, and funding streams have cropped up at New York University, the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Michigan, the University of Toronto, Harvard University, Baruch College, the University of Denver, and the University of Southern California, to name a few. Donations are pouring in. Researchers are convening at conferences in growing numbers. An official scholarly association and a new journal are on the way.
A Missouri man has been arrested for allegedly posting bomb-making tutorials online that were used by the ISIS flag-carrying terrorist who killed 14 people in New Orleans on New Year’s Day. Jordan Derrick, 40, is accused of filming and posting a slew of videos on social media that show him making explosive materials, including detonators, federal prosecutors said Tuesday.
Jerusalem Post: Second assailant arrested in connection to vicious assault at DePaul University
The second of two assailants who viciously attacked two Jewish students on the DePaul University campus in 2024 has been arrested. Kasem Noubani, 24, appeared in Cook County Court last week on counts of aggravated battery and two counts of a hate crime. The same charges were filed against the other attacker, Adam Erkan, who pleaded guilty in November 2025.
After a Pennsylvania Supreme Court justice appeared to indicate that he had ditched the Democratic Party, declaring in a statement that he is "no longer registered within any political party," U.S. Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., noted that he understood the man's decision.
JNS: DOJ antisemitism task force chair urges NYC action after Brooklyn protest
Leo Terrell, chair of the U.S. Justice Department’s task force on Jew-hatred, called on New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani to take action following a protest outside the Young Israel of Midwood in Brooklyn on Monday night that led to four arrests. Terrell criticized city leadership over what he described as insufficient enforcement following incidents targeting Jewish New Yorkers.
Jewish Insider: DSA is ‘evil,’ trying to drive Jews out of polite society, D.C. Jewish leader says
Amid the rise of a DSA-aligned mayoral candidate in the city, a senior Jewish community leader in Washington, D.C., excoriated the Democratic Socialists of America as an “evil” organization committed to driving Jews out of society. Speaking on a webinar with other Washington-area Jewish leaders on Tuesday, Ron Halber, the CEO of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington, stridently criticized the far-left group.
Jewish Insider: Mamdani announces tens of millions in spending on hate crime prevention
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced his administration would allocate $26 million annually toward anti-hate crimes measures, signaling that the significant funding increase — promised during the campaign season — would go toward a program that funds both leading Jewish organizations and left-wing nonprofits.
Seated before the dais at the start of a May Skokie Village Board meeting, Mayor Ann Tennes acknowledged what she described as a “pattern” of youths using antisemitic language in local parks. Tennes’ remarks were in reference to three antisemitic exchanges that reportedly took place at Skokie parks since Oct. 7, 2025. While only one of those incidents has been designated a hate crime, all three involved youths physically attacking Jewish juveniles, Skokie police said.
Canada
JNS: Canadian Jews ‘questioning future’ amid increasing antisemitism
The Canadian Jewish community is “questioning its future” amid escalating antisemitism unprecedented in the last half century, the head of a prominent Canadian Jewish organization said this week.
Dominican Republic
JNS: Dominican Republic recognizes Hezbollah, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as terror groups
Jewish groups and Israeli officials applauded the Dominican Republic’s decision on Tuesday to recognize Hezbollah and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, of Iran, as terror groups.
France
A private meeting between Jewish teenagers from across France and US Ambassador Charles Kushner exposed the daily reality facing young Jews in French public schools, where some said they hide their identity, remove visible Jewish symbols, and wait all week for the chance to reconnect with Jewish peers.
Germany
Germany’s domestic intelligence services have produced a dossier detailing “secular pro-Palestinian extremism” in the country. The report by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) includes sections on “antisemitism in secular pro-Palestinian extremism”, “symbols and identifying marks”, and “networking between pro-Palestinian extremists, left-wing extremists and Islamists”.
United Kingdom
Reuters: Britain to legislate to tackle threats from hostile state proxies
Britain will legislate to strengthen its ability to deal with proxies for malign state actors, taking powers to make it possible to ban them in light of increased activity in Britain and a rise in antisemitic attacks. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has said the government has to "deal with malign state actors" in the wake of a series of attacks on Britain's Jewish community.
JNS: King Charles says London to take ‘urgent action’ against Jew-hatred
King Charles III of the United Kingdom said on Wednesday that the British government would take immediate action to combat antisemitism in the country. “My government will take urgent action to tackle antisemitism and ensure all communities feel safe,” the monarch vowed in his speech at the ceremonial opening of parliament.
Times of Israel: Record high number of British Jews attend aliyah fair as antisemitism roils country
If there was ever a metaphor for British Jews’ ambivalence about emigrating to Israel, it was on full display at the Aliyah Day fair in London on Sunday. Visitors to the event, held at StoneX Stadium, a north London rugby venue, passed through airport-style security under the watchful eye of Metropolitan Police officers, volunteers for the Jewish nonprofit Community Security Trust, and burly Israeli guards.
A British-Iranian man said a suspected Iran-linked agent offered him £40,000 ($53,000) to kill a London-based journalist critical of Tehran, the Jewish Chronicle reported. The man, identified by the pseudonym “Nima,” told the newspaper he reported the incident to British police after returning to the UK and warned the journalist, who works for a Persian-language broadcaster.
The Guardian: Palestine Action activists in Elbit protest could be sentenced as terrorists
Four Palestine Action activists convicted after a retrial over a violent protest at an Israeli arms manufacturer’s UK site face being sentenced as terrorists despite the jury not being told this.
Afghanistan
Yue Xiaoyong, China’s Special Envoy for Afghanistan, said Pakistan and the Taliban view the Urumqi process positively and are ready to cooperate for peace, security and development. He said he had recently travelled to Afghanistan again and met with Amir Khan Muttaqi and other Taliban officials.’
Afghanistan International: Taliban to Sell Confiscated Housing Estates Back to Residents
The Taliban has published a new law allowing it to seize land deemed “state-owned”, including existing residential areas, and resell it to residents and property owners. The Taliban’s Ministry of Justice announced on Tuesday, May 12, that the “Law on the Sale and Distribution of State Land Plots and Issuing Construction Permits” had been published in the official gazette. The law, based on several decrees by the Taliban leader, contains 38 articles across six chapters.
Gaza Strip/West Bank
Reuters: Israel steps up attacks on Gaza since Iran truce, as military says Hamas rearming
Israel has escalated its attacks in Gaza in the five weeks since halting its joint bombing with the U.S. in Iran, redirecting its fire back on the ruined Palestinian enclave where the military believes Hamas fighters are tightening their grip. According to the Gaza Health Ministry, 120 Palestinians, including eight women and 13 children, were killed in Gaza since the Iran war was paused on April 8 - 20% more than in the five weeks prior when Israel was flying sorties over Iran.
Times of Israel: Palestinian man to be indicted for killing settler in fatal March car ramming
Dawas Hassoun, a Palestinian man in his 50s, will be indicted for the fatal ramming of 18-year-old Yehuda Sherman in the West Bank, police and the Shin Bet announced Wednesday, classifying the incident as an intentional attack.
Israel
Sexual violence was systematic, widespread and integral to the Hamas-led Oct. 7 attacks and their aftermath, a new report by an Israeli nonprofit has found. The report, titled “Silenced No More,” was published Tuesday by the Civil Commission, an independent group that documents and researches gender-based violence by Hamas after its 2023 attack on Israel that sparked the war in Gaza.
Naharnet: Hezbollah launches 'most significant drone attack' on Israel
Hezbollah launched Tuesday a massive drone swarm attack on north Israel, Israeli media said, adding that it is the first time multiple drones target a single target inside Israel. An Israeli security source described the attack as the most significant drone attack on Israel to date.
Lebanon
Naharnet: Lebanon files UN complaint against Iran
In an unprecedented diplomatic move, Lebanon has filed a formal complaint with the U.N. against Iran, accusing Tehran of violating the Vienna Convention on diplomatic relations, interfering in Lebanese sovereign affairs, and embroiling the country in a devastating war against its will, Independent Arabia reported.
Times of Israel: UN force in Lebanon accuses Hezbollah of drone attack that damaged its HQ
The UN Interim Force in Lebanon says it has come under several Hezbollah drone attacks in recent days, including one that caused damage to its headquarters in southern Lebanon. On Monday, three “presumed” Hezbollah drones exploded “within meters” of UNIFIL’s Naqoura headquarters, where IDF soldiers “could have been present,” the observer force says.
Naharnet: Aoun reportedly says arms monopoly decision is 'final and irreversible'
President Joseph Aoun expressed "deep concern" following the latest Israeli ground incursion north of the Litani River and made "direct contact with senior officials in the U.S. administration, as well as with the Lebanese ambassador to Washington, Nada Moawad, with the aim of pressuring Israel and compelling it to establish a ceasefire before any negotiations can begin," media reports said. In other leaks, sources in the Baabda Palace stated that Lebanon "insists that a ceasefire be the mandatory prerequisite for negotiations and refuses to negotiate under fire," noting that the Lebanese delegation, headed by Ambassador Simon Karam, "is considering delaying its entry into the negotiating table if a ceasefire is not established beforehand."
Fox News: Inside the Christian border town in Lebanon that says it survived by defying Hezbollah
The church bells still ring in Rmeish on the Lebanon-Israel border. While much of southern Lebanon has suffered destruction during the war between Israel and the terror group Hezbollah, the predominantly Christian border town close to Israel remained largely untouched. Churches are still standing. Homes remain intact. Residents say the village avoided Israeli strikes because locals refused to allow Hezbollah fighters to operate from inside the town.
Kuwait
Daily Sabah: Iran dismisses Kuwait’s accusations over alleged IRGC-linked plot
Iran pushed back Tuesday against accusations from Kuwait that members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps were involved in an infiltration attempt, saying the allegations were unfounded and warning against politicizing the incident.
Kurdistan24: Kuwait Says Detained Men Confessed to Belonging to Iran’s Revolutionary Guards
Kuwait said Tuesday that four men arrested earlier this month while attempting to enter the country by sea confessed to being members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, escalating tensions between the two neighboring states amid the wider regional conflict.
Turkey
Reuters: Iran war brings Turkey-PKK peace process to near standstill
Just two weeks after Turkey's parliament made recommendations on how to advance thecountry's peace process with Kurdish militants, the Iran war broke out, plunging the Middle East into fresh instability and bringing new doubts on both sides. Turkey has warned of the risk of new Kurdish mobilisations in Iran and Iraq and, according to a government official, played a key role in quashing a short-lived U.S.-Israeli idea to back a Kurdish militant ground invasion of Iran from Iraq.
Reuters: Explainer: What's at stake in Turkey's bid to end conflict with PKK militants?
Turkey's attempt to finish its decades-old conflict with the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) militant group has stalled, with both sides waiting for the other to act in a peace bid complicated by the Iran war. The apparent stalemate has held up a resolution to one of the world's longest-running conflicts, which has killed more than 40,000 people since 1984, exacted a huge economic cost and sowed political and social divisions in Turkey.
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates on Wednesday designated 21 Lebanese individuals and organizations as “terrorists,” ordering the immediate freezing of their assets over alleged links to the Iran-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah, according to the state-run Emirates News Agency (WAM).
Nigeria
The Guardian: Repentant terrorists swear oath with Quran before reintegration in Borno
The thousands of Boko Haram repentant terrorists are to take an oath with a Quran before they are fully reintegrated into their respective communities in Borno state. Beyond the repentance of the terrorists, the State’s ex- Commissioner of Women Affairs and Social Development, Hajiya Zuwaira Gambo said: “The state Government has since allayed the fears that many repentant terrorists that were reintegrated into the society after their rehabilitation and de-radicalization programme will go back to terrorism again
South Africa
Reuters: Ghana to evacuate 300 citizens from South Africa after xenophobic attacks
Ghana will evacuate 300 citizens from South Africa following a wave of xenophobic attacks targeting migrants from other sub-Saharan African countries, a post by the foreign minister said on X.
Australia
The Guardian: Canberra teenager charged over allegedly planning ACT terror attack
A Canberra teenager has become the first person to be charged with planning a terrorist act in the ACT. On 5 November last year, the 17-year-old was arrested and charged after alleged violent extremist material was located during a search warrant. He has been remanded in custody since his arrest.
A man accused of planning terrorist attacks in Perth has been charged with further offences, including possession of child abuse material, bulletproof clothing and violent extremist material on his devices.
Kurdistan24: Australian Authorities File Crimes Against Humanity Charges in ISIS Case
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) have filed historic crimes against humanity charges against two women recently repatriated from a displacement camp in Syria, marking a significant escalation in the nation's efforts to seek legal accountability for alleged conduct during the rule of the Islamic State (ISIS).
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