Eye on Extremism: May 28, 2026
Top Stories
Reuters: Iran's IRGC say they targeted US airbase after strike near Bandar Abbas
Iran's Revolutionary Guards said on Thursday they targeted a U.S. airbase at 0450 local time after what they described as an early morning U.S. attack near Bandar Abbas airport, Tasnim news agency reported.
Social media users complained of hate speech mainly from France, followed by Belgium and Italy. Social media platforms such as Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube are systematically failing to enforce their own hate speech policies, according to a major transparency report.
CEP Mentions
BR24: Trial concerning IS platform: Where suspicion of terrorism begins
Terrorism expert Hans-Jakob Schindler of the transatlantic think tank Counter Extremism Project considers the case highly complex. Much suggests that the donations collected by Nadine D. were deliberately concealed. Accounts and PayPal accounts were not in the names of those involved, and there were instructions to use only innocuous terms like "help" or "clothing" when making transfers. For Schindler, this points to possible terrorist financing.
To understand who Klette is and the far-left group she was a part of, Host Marco Werman speaks with Hans-Jakob Schindler, senior director at The Counter Extremism Project, who’s in Berlin.
Tagesschau: How prisoner aid became a terrorism suspicion
Terrorism expert Hans-Jakob Schindler of the transatlantic think tank Counter Extremism Project considers the case highly complex. Much suggests that the donations collected by Nadine D. were deliberately concealed. Accounts and PayPal accounts were not in the names of those involved, and there were also instructions to use only innocuous terms like "help" or "clothing" when making transfers.
Analysis
Iraq finds itself at a new crossroads. Will it rein in Iranian-backed militias, or let them continue to hollow out the country? It is one of many crossroads in the history of Iraq, a divided country.
United States
Reuters: US puts UN expert Albanese back on list of sanctioned individuals, Treasury website shows
The United States has re-added Francesca Albanese, a U.N. expert on the Palestinian territories, to a list of sanctioned individuals, according to a notice posted to the U.S. Treasury's website on Wednesday.
Reuters: US Treasury sanctions Iran's Hormuz strait authority
The United States has sanctioned the Persian Gulf Strait Authority, the body Iran has set up to manage the Strait of Hormuz, the Treasury Department said on Wednesday.
The Guardian: US neo-Nazi plotted to kill journalist who reported on him, testimony reveals
An Alabama neo-Nazi accused of trying to start a paramilitary unit to take out “high value targets” aimed to kill a journalist who once reported on him, according to law enforcement testimony obtained by the Guardian.
Another violent scene unfolded near Santa Monica’s struggling Third Street Promenade over the weekend after a man threatened a Jewish couple with a baseball bat and antisemitic slurs before unleashing his dog on one of the victims in broad daylight.
JNS: Police seek suspects in antisemitic vandalism at 9/11 memorial in Wisconsin
Police in Lisbon, Wis., are seeking suspects accused of spray-painting antisemitic graffiti on a local 9/11 memorial earlier this month. Authorities said swastikas, a Star of David and other graffiti were discovered on the Lisbon Village Hall building and the nearby 9/11 memorial on May 9. The vandalism also included “Matthew 6” and “Romans 4,” referring to chapters in the New Testament.
WTKR: White supremacy group 'Patriot Front' marches in Virginia Beach, NAACP condemns
A white supremacist group that marched at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront on Saturday sparked outrage in the community, condemnation from the NAACP, and a response from the city's police department.
WUWM 89.7: 'Complete silence' from public officials: Muslims speak out against growing Islamophobia
Six leaders from Milwaukee’s Muslim community shared a stage last week at Milwaukee’s Islamic Resource Center. The event was to promote the new book Muslims in Milwaukee: Placemaking, Belonging and Activism. The panelists talked about the book's deep research of the community, which took place over nearly 15 years. After the talk, they opened up about issues facing Muslims and Muslim-Americans from outside of their community.
European Union
Politico: Brussels watchdog moves to ban Alternative for Germany’s EU party
The far-right Europe of Sovereign Nations party — home of Alternative for Germany — could be outlawed for failing to uphold EU values. The watchdog that oversees European political parties triggered a process that could result in the ESN being stripped of its right to be a political party and losing its funding.
Austria
Reuters: Austrian court sentences Syrian to life in prison for deadly knife attack
An Austrian court sentenced a 24-year-old Kurdish Syrian refugee to life in prison on Wednesday for a deadly knife attack in the southern town of Villach last year, after a jury found him guilty of all charges including murder and terrorism offences. The defendant, who has not been named, was arrested moments after killing a 14-year-old boy and wounding five other people with a jackknife in February 2025. He admitted carrying out the attack and swearing allegiance to Islamic State.
Germany
Deutsche Welle: The German gym fighting the far right with MMA
While Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) training at Athletic Sonnenberg resembles many such gyms, members of the Chemnitz sports club see it as a battleground for democracy. "This has a clear political element," said Stani, the martial arts coach at Athletic Sonnenberg. "Lots of martial arts gyms in Saxony are run by right-wingers and there are many right-wing structures in the MMA scene generally."
Italy
Reuters: Rome Pride bars Jewish LGBT group from parade over Gaza stance
Rome Pride has barred Italy's only Jewish LGBT group from joining its annual parade, saying Keshet Italia had failed to clearly condemn Israel's actions in Gaza as genocide, drawing swift condemnation from Jewish organisations.
Netherlands
Alleged Hamas financier Amin Abu Rashid was acquitted of providing funds to the Palestinian terrorist organization, according to a Wednesday ruling by the Rotterdam Court, but was convicted of evading sanctions and continued management of a prohibited organization.
JNS: Dutch antisemitic incidents fell in 2025, but still at historically high level
Dutch Jews on Thursday said they documented 281 antisemitic incidents last year, a sharp decrease from the 421 record high documented in 2024. While lower than 2024 and 2023, the 2025 tally still represents a major increase over any of those documented in the decade preceding 2023, wrote the Center for Information and Documentation on Israel, or CIDI, the Jewish community watchdog that published its annual report on Thursday.
Switzerland
Reuters: Swiss police say attacker injures three with knife in Winterthur
A man was arrested after injuring three people in a knife attack at a train station in the Swiss city of Winterthur near Zurich, local police said on Thursday. Police said the attack happened shortly after 0630 GMT and the suspected perpetrator 31-year-old Swiss national was arrested. The three victims of the attack were receiving hospital care, according to the police statement.
United Kingdom
JTA: British Museum postpones a Jewish Culture Month lecture, citing ‘disruption’ concerns
The British Museum has canceled a lecture titled ‘‘Ancient Israel and Judah” that was scheduled to take place today on its premises. In a statement on Wednesday, the museum said the decision was made because it was informed in recent days that “a significant proportion of registered attendees were individuals intending to deliberately disrupt the event.”
GBN: Labour MPs call for probe into alleged Islamophobia by members of Reform UK
Labour MPs have written to the chair of the equalities watchdog to demand Reform UK faces a probe regarding allegations of Islamophobia. The group of 27 MPs claimed there was "overwhelming evidence" Reform had breached its obligations under the 2010 Equality Act.
Afghanistan
Ayatollah Waezzada Behsudi, a prominent and senior Shia emulation and cleric, says Taliban pressure on followers of the Ja'fari school has steadily increased over the past five years, adding that people approach religious scholars in tears to complain about mounting restrictions.
Mohammad Yaqoob Mujahid, the Taliban's defence minister, told Ali Bagheri, deputy secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, in Moscow that Afghan territory and airspace have never posed a threat to Iran.
Gaza Strip/West Bank
Reuters: EU sanctions Israeli settlers, expands sanctions to Hamas' Politburo members
The EU Council on Thursday imposed sanctions on four entities and three individuals for abuses against Palestinians in West Bank, it said in a statement. The list includes what the EU Council called extremist Israeli settlers and organisations that support them. In a separate statement, the Council said it would also broaden the scope of the EU's sanctions on Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad to also cover members of Hamas' Political Bureau (Politburo) who promote, defend, or justify acts of violence.
Hamas on Wednesday confirmed the death of Mohammed Odeh, the newly appointed head of the terror group’s military wing, who Israel killed in a strike in Gaza City.
Jerusalem Post: IDF targets two central Hamas commanders in Gaza strikes
The IDF struck two senior Hamas commanders in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday evening, targeting northern Gaza brigade commander Ezz al-Din Beik and Gaza City deputy brigade commander Imad Aslim, who also serves as commander of the Zeitoun Battalion.
Jerusalem Post: Five arrested during joint IDF, Shin Bet counterterrorism ops. in West Bank
The IDF arrested five people during three separate counterterrorism operations in the West Bank throughout Tuesday and Wednesday, the military announced Thursday morning.
A young Israeli settler was filmed on Wednesday repeatedly striking a dog during a raid on a Palestinian village in the southern West Bank — the second such incident in less than two weeks.
The International Stabilization Force for Gaza was announced with great aplomb at the inaugural meeting of U.S. President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace in February. The American general tapped to lead the 20,000-strong force said it would ensure “future prosperity and enduring peace” after the devastating Israel-Hamas war.
Iran
Kurdistan24: Iran’s Supreme Leader Accuses US and Israel of Seeking to Destabilize Islamic Republic
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei on Thursday accused the United States and Israel of attempting to destabilize the Islamic republic and weaken national unity following months of war and escalating regional tensions.
Reuters: Iran and US trade air strikes after Trump dismisses report of Hormuz deal
Iran targeted a U.S. air base in Kuwait on Thursday after the United States struck what Washington described as an Iranian drone operation near the Strait of Hormuz and President Donald Trump rejected a reported compromise deal with Tehran.
Jerusalem Post: Islamic regime fires at four ships attempting to cross the Strait of Hormuz
The Islamic regime fired at four ships attempting to cross the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday night, state media site IRIB reported. The broadcaster alleged the ships attempted the journey to enter the Persian Gulf “without coordination with the security forces” at 12:35 am local time.
Iran International: Guards say region will not see peace until Israel is destroyed
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said the Middle East would not see peace until Israel is “destroyed,” dismissing what it called US President Donald Trump’s vision of peace as one of “killing, murder and terror.”
Iraq
The New Region: Iraqi forces kill alleged ISIS members in Kirkuk operation
The Iraqi defense ministry on Wednesday announced the killing of several alleged Islamic State (ISIS) members and destroying their hideouts in a security operation in Kirkuk, as Iraq continues efforts to target the group’s remnants in the country.
Israel
Times of Israel: Soldier killed in Hezbollah drone attack as Israel widens strikes on terror group
A soldier was killed and two reservists were wounded in a Hezbollah explosive drone attack near the Lebanese border, the military announced Thursday, as fighting along the restive frontier continued to intensify.
Lebanon
Times of Israel: Hezbollah claims clashes with Israeli troops north of Litani; IDF dismisses reports
Hezbollah on Wednesday said it was clashing with Israeli troops north of the Litani River in southern Lebanon amid a northward advance by Israeli ground forces, though the military dismissed the terror group’s claims, saying it was “unaware of anything unusual.”
Pakistan
Afghanistan International: Pakistani PM Accuses Taliban Of Helping India Undermine Pakistan
Shehbaz Sharif, Pakistan’s Prime Minister, says the Taliban regime is helping India’s activities against Pakistan and vowed to continue military operations against threats inside Afghanistan.
Africa
Long War Journal: Shabaab spokesman congratulates JNIM, denounces Western powers in Eid message
Yesterday, as part of its annual celebrations for Eid al Adha, Shabaab, Al Qaeda’s branch for East Africa, released its usual speech for the occasion. Delivered by Shabaab’s official spokesman, Ali Mohamad Rage, the speech celebrated two other al Qaeda branches, the Group for Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM) and Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP). Rage also denounced American and Turkish activities in Somalia and decried the government headed by Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud.
Mali
When the military first ousted a democratically elected president and took over the country six years ago, many Malians welcomed their new leaders. After all, they promised stability and security for a country that has been battling insurgents for years. But that was then.
Australia
Sydney Morning Herald: Antisemitism guidelines flagged for arts organisations and funding
Senior federal public servants say discussions are under way to explore possible guidelines and codes of conduct preventing arts funding supporting antisemitism or racial vilification.
J-Wire: Five charged over alleged ISIS-inspired extremist material
Five Victorian men have been charged after federal police allegedly uncovered ISIS-inspired propaganda and graphic terrorist material shared online.
Al-Monitor: Australia charges woman with terrorism over IS links
Australian police charged on Thursday a woman linked to the Islamic State group with membership of a terrorist organisation and entering a known conflict zone. Hundreds of women from Western nations were lured to the Middle East as IS gained prominence in the early 2010s, in many cases following husbands who had signed up as jihadist fighters.
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