Eye on Extremism: October 29, 2025
Top Stories
Israel’s military said Wednesday that the ceasefire was back on in Gaza after it carried out heavy airstrikes overnight across the Palestinian territory that killed 104 people, including 46 children, according to local health officials. The strikes — the deadliest since the ceasefire began on Oct. 10 — marked the most serious challenge to the tenuous truce to date. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had ordered the strikes after accusing Hamas of violating the ceasefire for handing over body parts this week that Israel said were partial remains of a hostage recovered earlier in the war. That was compounded by the shooting and killing an Israeli soldier during an exchange of gunfire in Rafah, the southernmost city in Gaza.
Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has issued a sharp warning to the Taliban, threatening their complete destruction and saying Pakistan could force them to “flee back to the Tora Bora caves.” Asif claimed that Pakistan would not need to use even a fraction of its military power to “completely obliterate the Taliban regime” and said a repeat of the Taliban’s retreat into Tora Bora would be “a spectacle to watch.” The Tora Bora mountain complex in eastern Afghanistan gained notoriety for its strategic role after the Taliban's fall in 2001.
Analysis
The Washington Institute: A Roadmap for Israel-Lebanon Peace
While global attention is focused on the potential for ending the Gaza war, a refreshingly positive discussion has also emerged about the possibility of peace on Israel’s northern front with Lebanon. A long road separates hopeful talk from actual diplomatic moves, but for the first time in decades, peace itself is no longer taboo in Lebanon, triggering a serious national conversation about a topic once only mentioned in whispers.
GNET: An Exploration of Identity-Based Hate and Extremist Content on Roblox
The gaming sector is becoming increasingly relevant in efforts to understand contemporary forms of extremism. Extremist actors of various ideological backgrounds, including right-wing extremists and jihadists, are seeking to exploit gaming in various ways. This includes the production of bespoke propaganda games, the instrumentalisation of commercial video games and in-game communication features, the appropriation of gaming aesthetics and gamified elements, as well as the exploitation of gaming and gaming (-adjacent) platforms.
Ahmad Musa Jibril is a U.S.-born cleric of Palestinian descent based in Dearborn, Michigan, whose combination of traditional Salafi education, legal training, and prolific online activity has positioned him as one of the most influential extremist preachers operating in the West. Over time, his discourse—as analyzed in this paper alongside his ideology and digital strategy—has attracted a significant transnational following, positioning him as a pivotal agitator whose Salafi credentials and online reach combine to produce a distinctly radicalizing and dangerous discourse.
In February, under the last Gaza ceasefire deal, Hamas “returned” the body of an unknown Gaza woman instead of the promised remains of deceased hostage Shiri Bibas, whom it had murdered in captivity along with her two sons, Ariel, 4, and Kfir, 9 months. Two weeks ago, under the current deal, it “returned” the body of a West Bank Palestinian man rather than one of the deceased hostages it is still holding.
United States
Associated Press: 2 men face sentencing in plot to kill Iranian American journalist
A plot to assassinate Iranian American journalist Masih Alinejad at her Brooklyn home came “chillingly near success,” prosecutors told a judge who will sentence two purported Russian mobsters. Prosecutors are seeking 55-year prison terms for Rafat Amirov, 46, and Polad Omarov, 41, at their sentencing on Wednesday in Manhattan federal court. Prosecutors said Amirov, of Iran, and Omarov, of Georgia, were crime bosses in the Russian mob.
US President Donald Trump declared Wednesday that “nothing is going to jeopardize” the ceasefire in Gaza, but added that Israel “should hit back” if its soldiers were killed. His remarks came a day after an exchange of fire between Israel and Hamas, and as Jerusalem and the terror group accused each other of violating the ceasefire deal. “They killed an Israeli soldier. So the Israelis hit back. And they should hit back,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One. Trump has claimed that Hamas officials told his aides Witkoff and Kushner that they would disarm, but the terror organization has repeatedly said otherwise.
Jerusalem Post: Tucker Carlson probes Nick Fuentes on Israel, antisemitism, and ‘these Zionist Jews’
Tucker Carlson wanted to know: What does Nick Fuentes actually believe? “Everybody’s going to be like, ‘You’re a Nazi, you just like Fuentes,’” the former Fox News personality mused on his show Tuesday. “But then I’m like, ‘I don’t think Fuentes is going away. Ben Shapiro tried to strangle him in the crib in college, and now he’s bigger than ever.’”
Wall Street Journal: Law Firms Build Free Legal Assistance Network to Combat Antisemitism
More than 40 large law firms are launching a network to provide free legal assistance to Jewish people facing antisemitism in the wake of the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel and war in Gaza. The network grew from a project launched two years ago to create a hotline for college students and professors to report antisemitism on campuses. Over 1,000 individuals from more than 260 campuses reached out about incidents, including violence, verbal harassment, swastikas painted on students’ dorm-room doors and Jewish students locked out of campus buildings by protesters.
Fox News: ‘Unprecedented’ antisemitism panel tackles surging national issue
Federal judges will tackle antisemitism at an annual convention next week, joining a rare multi-judge panel in a forum typically reserved for one-person lectures, Fox News Digital has learned. U.S. District Judge Roy Altman, who will moderate the discussion, said the panel is "unprecedented" and a needed change to address what he said was a rise in antisemitism in the aftermath of Hamas’ terrorist attack on Israel in 2023. The panel is part of the Federalist Society's annual National Lawyers Convention.
Daniel Rosen earned a unique distinction when he was confirmed by the U.S. Senate early this month to be Minnesota’s top federal prosecutor. The 60-year-old lawyer and Orthodox Jewish community activist is one of the few Orthodox Jews to serve as U.S. attorney. And he is almost certainly the only chief federal law enforcement officer in the county who regularly studies the Talmud, a text, he says, that shares a “phenomenal” range of common principles with the American legal tradition.
In the latest antisemitic incident to rock a community, threatened attacks on synagogues in Alabama and surrounding states were thwarted when a person was arrested with a suitcase full of ammunition, body armor and other items, officials said Tuesday.
MLive: Man kicks door, yells antisemitic remark outside Jewish center near University of Michigan
A man was caught on surveillance video kicking the door and shouting obscenities outside a Jewish center near the University of Michigan, prompting a police investigation. An unknown man was seen on surveillance footage around 1:42 a.m. on Sunday, Oct. 26 kicking the front door of the Jewish Resource Center, 1335 Hill Street in Ann Arbor.
A New York City man who attacked Jewish pro-Israel counter-protesters at three separate pro-Palestinian demonstrations was sentenced on Tuesday to 17 months in prison. U.S. District Judge Richard Berman read a letter from Tarek Bazrouk during the sentencing hearing where he said there was “no excuse for my behavior” and that he “let feelings over the suffering in Gaza get the best of me.”
The hard right pushed a number of common conspiracy theories after Charlie Kirk’s killing — among them antisemitic narratives falsely claiming that Jewish people or Israel orchestrated his killing.
Jewish News Syndicate: Mamdani comments on IDF ‘antisemitism,’ ADL chief says
Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO and national director of the Anti-Defamation League, accused New York state assemblyman Zohran Mamdani of antisemitism on Tuesday over resurfaced footage of the Democratic mayoral nominee saying that the Israel Defense Forces is responsible for American police violence.
The New York City artist behind an antisemitic and Hamas-obsessed installation on taxpayer-funded Governors Island was caught on camera going berserk when probed about the hate-filled artwork. Rebecca Goyette flipped out when The Post approached her on Tuesday to ask a simple question after her so-called artwork sparked outrage when it sprung up at a weekend family Halloween event. “Get the f–k away from me, what are you doing?” she shrieked as she tried to shield her face under her hooded sweatshirt.
Ban toy guns from public parks. Make data on hate crimes more accessible. Partner with religious groups to improve education. Use direct language in public statements. Enforce recourses if offenders don’t comply with Village recommendations. Those measures stuck out during a Skokie Human Relations Commission discussion on Monday evening at the Skokie Police Department as efforts to fight antisemitism in light of a recent hate crime that involved minors on Oct. 7 at Shawnee Park.
WABI 5: Bangor councilor confronts white nationalist Zoom caller, throws pen during meeting
Tempers flared at Bangor City Council’s bimonthly meeting Monday. A Zoom caller who claimed to be named Eric Palmer used the public comment period to speak in support of ICE while using expletives and white nationalist language. This prompted a reaction from councilor Joseph Leonard who said “hate-mongers” like the caller aren’t welcome in the City. Leonard then appeared to throw a pen at someone in the room while making an obscene gesture and swearing at them.
Virginian-Pilot: Hate crime total increases in Virginia, subverting a national decline
Hate crimes in Virginia rose last year despite a small decline nationally. Reported hate crime incidents across the U.S. last year totaled 10,873, down 1.5% from 2023, according to crime statistics from the Federal Bureau of Investigation. But, there was a 15% increase in reported hate crime incidents in Virginia from 2023 to 2024, and in the past decade, hate crimes increased 176% in the state. The most targeted groups last year were Black and African Americans at 36%, Jewish people at 23% and the LGBTQ+ community at 8%.
Germany
Basically, all areas in which the Office for the Protection of the Constitution conducts intelligence gathering are currently experiencing a boom. This is unusual, because in past decades there have always been focal points—Islamist terrorism or Russian espionage during the Cold War. But right now, in addition to these two issues, right-wing terrorism, left-wing violence, cyberattacks, and Reich citizens are also major areas of concern. Added to this is an increased need for security checks in the public sector, which the Federal Office carries out together with the state offices. And then there is the dispute with the AfD over its assessment as wholly or partly extremist. This also keeps the agency very busy.
ARD: How the AfD is seeking to gain a foothold in the US
In August 2025, the Ludwigshafen Election Committee excluded AfD state parliament member Joachim Paul from the mayoral election. The reason given was doubts about his loyalty to the constitution. The basis for this was a 16-point report by the Rhineland-Palatinate Office for the Protection of the Constitution, which is available to the NDR media editorial team ZAPP. These ranged from contacts with right-wing extremist groups to racist statements and support for so-called remigration plans. Paul's urgent appeals against the exclusion failed all the way up to the Constitutional Court. Online media outlets close to the AfD and right-wing populists in particular initially picked up on the narrative of an illegitimate exclusion in German.
German public broadcaster ZDF announced on Monday that a 37-year-old employee of its Palestinian partner organization, who was killed last week, was also a Hamas terrorist. Israel provided the broadcaster with evidence proving the engineer’s membership, ZDF confirmed.
Associated Press: Germany to give more than $1 billion for Holocaust survivors’ home care in 2026
The organization that handles claims on behalf of Jews who suffered under the Nazis said Wednesday that Germany has agreed to extend another $1.076 billion (923.9 million euros) for Holocaust survivors ' home care around the globe for the coming year.
United Kingdom
Sky News: Manchester synagogue attack victims' cause of death given at inquest
One of the victims of the Manchester synagogue attack died from a single gunshot wound, and the other from multiple stab wounds, an inquest has heard. Melvin Cravitz, 66, and Adrian Daulby, 53, were killed in the attack at Heaton Park Hebrew Synagogue in Crumpsall on 2 October.
UK-based Imam Umayr Mulla was suspended from Masjid Khazra in Nottingham after stating he “had no issue with Israel,” and recognized Israelis’ history in the Middle East while appearing in an interview in Jerusalem with British anti-immigration campaigner Tommy Robinson last week.
Independent: British citizenship ‘loophole’ axed under new law
A new law has come into force, preventing individuals stripped of their British citizenship on national security grounds from automatically regaining it after an initial appeal. Previously, those deemed a threat could be released from immigration detention or returned to the UK while further appeals were still underway.
A London bus driver allegedly harassed and trapped a Jewish passenger in a shocking antisemitic incident that has drawn widespread outrage. The victim, who identified himself only as David, said the driver hurled antisemitic insults, kept his debit card, and refused to let him leave.
British Airways has dropped its sponsorship of documentarian Louis Theroux’s podcast following an interview with British punk musician Bobby Vylan where the artist defended his chants of “death, death to the IDF” at the Glastonbury music festival.
Daily Star: Shamima Begum a 'recluse' in Syrian camp as she dons sports wear and 'won't talk'
Jihadi bride Shamima Begum is a recluse in the Syrian detainment camp she now calls home, it is claimed. The infamous schoolgirl runaway, now 26, "refuses to speak to anyone" at the sprawling camp set up for the exiled foreign women of Isis.
Vatican
Pope Leo XIV acknowledged Wednesday that there had been misunderstandings and conflicts with Jews over Israel’s war in Gaza. But he strongly confirmed the Catholic Church’s condemnation of antisemitism and commitment to fighting it as part of Christians’ Gospel-mandated friendship with the Jewish people.
Kazakhstan
Reuters: Kazakhstan lawmakers give preliminary approval to ban on LGBT 'propaganda'
Kazakhstan moved a step closer on Wednesday to banning the spreading of what it calls LGBT "propaganda" online or in the media, with repeat offenders facing up to 10 days in prison.
A working group of members of parliament approved amendments introducing the penalties for what it views as propaganda for non-traditional relationships and paedophilia, echoing similar laws passed in Russia and other former-Soviet countries.
Afghanistan
Afghanistan International: Renewed Taliban Infighting Reported In Afghanistan’s Badakhshan Province
Fighting has again broken out among Taliban forces in Afghanistan’s Badakhshan province. Local sources reported renewed clashes early Wednesday in the Shahr-e-Buzurg district between Taliban units and fighters loyal to Abdul Rahman Ammar, the group’s former provincial head of mining.
Afghanistan International: Istanbul Peace Talks Between Pakistan & Taliban Break Down
Pakistan’s Minister of Information and Broadcasting, Attaullah Tarar, announced on Tuesday that four days of negotiations with the “Afghan Taliban regime” in Istanbul had ended without agreement. In a statement on X, Tarar thanked Qatar and Turkiye for mediating the talks but accused the Taliban delegation of avoiding discussions on key issues.
Afghanistan International: Taliban Warns Of “Decisive Response” To Any Pakistani Attack
The Taliban’s Ministry of Interior warned Tuesday that any attack by Pakistan would be met with a “decisive and powerful response,” describing it as a “lesson for Pakistan and a warning for others.” Abdul Matin Qane, spokesperson for the Taliban’s Interior Ministry, told Afghanistan’s Ariana News that “the Taliban have never bowed to any force.”
Afghanistan International: Taliban Publicly Flog Two Women, Three Men in Ghor & Balkh
The Taliban’s Supreme Court said on Wednesday that two women and three men were publicly flogged in Afghanistan’s Ghor and Balkh provinces on charges of “moral corruption” and “alcohol trafficking.” According to the court’s statement, each of the convicted individuals received at least 39 lashes in public.
Gaza Strip
Reuters: Hamas denies responsibility for attack on Israeli forces in Rafah
Hamas denied responsibility on Tuesday for an attack on Israeli forces in the southern Gaza city of Rafah that prompted Israel to launch attacks in Gaza.
Jerusalem Post: Qatari prime minister says Gaza violence ‘very disappointing, frustrating’v
Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani on Wednesday described an attack on Israeli soldiers in Gaza and the strikes in response by Israel as "very disappointing and frustrating for us." He told the Council on Foreign Relations in New York that Hamas terrorists have been clear that they are willing to give up governance in Gaza, and that Qatar is trying to push them to acknowledge they need to disarm.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum and the Tzarfati family slammed Hamas and its continued psychological warfare, following the circulation of a video showing the organization's burial and "discovery" of Ofir Tzarfati's remains on Tuesday. The video, filmed by an IDF drone that had been in the area, shows Hamas members placing Tzarfati's remains in a freshly dug hole before covering the remains with dirt. They then proceeded to "dig" up the remains and called over members of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to witness the discovery.
Iraq
Shafaq News: Iraq repatriates +800 citizens from Syria’s al-Hol camp
A new group of 840 Iraqis left the al-Hol camp in Syria’s Hasakah province on Monday, heading toward Iraq under tight security provided by the US-led coalition against ISIS. A source in the camp told Shafaq News that the latest transfer, which included 249 families, marked the 13th batch in 2025 and the 30th convoy since the start of the repatriation process for Iraqis from al-Hol, adding that efforts continue to return Iraqi families “willing to go home” in coordination between the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria and the Iraqi government. According to Shafaq News correspondent, more than 20 Iraqi buses gathered outside the camp to transport the returnees through the al-Yarubiyah border crossing in eastern Hasakah.
Media Line: Iraq Captures IS Logistics Chief Linked to Deadly Attacks on Security Forces
Iraqi security forces have captured a senior Islamic State (IS) operative accused of orchestrating attacks that killed 19 members of the country’s security forces, officials announced Tuesday. The suspect, known as Abu Mohammed, was detained in Baghdad following a targeted operation by the Iraqi National Security Service (INSS). Authorities said the arrest came after a prolonged intelligence effort that traced his movements through multiple regions before he was lured into custody.
The National: Iraq denies sentencing Syrian to death for praising President Al Shara
Iraq on Tuesday denied claims that a Syrian man has been sentenced to death for praising Syria's President Ahmad Al Shara, who once fought as a militant in Iraq. The death sentence issued by a criminal court in the province of Najaf, south of Baghdad, was related to convictions for terrorism charges, Iraq's Supreme Judicial Council said.
Israel
Tuesday’s attack in Rafah came as Israel’s patience was already wearing dangerously thin. After Hamas failed to return any bodies of slain hostages for a week, it said on Monday night that it would hand over remains it had found that day. Instead, Israel discovered that the casket contained the partial remains of Ofir Tzarfati, a hostage whose body was already recovered by the military in early December 2023. If that wasn’t enough, an Israeli drone caught Hamas staging the fake “discovery” of Tzarfati’s remains on Monday afternoon in eastern Gaza City in front of the Red Cross.
A wave of Israeli airstrikes was reported Tuesday evening in Gaza City after Israeli officials vowed to respond to an attack on troops in south Gaza and Hamas’s failure to return the bodies of hostages still held in the Strip. There was no immediate comment from the Israel Defense Forces on the strikes, reported by Palestinian media, which came hours after Israeli troops stationed in southern Gaza’s Rafah came under fire by terror operatives. Troops returned fire at the attackers, and Palestinian media also reported Israeli artillery shelling in the Rafah area. Hamas later denied involvement in the shooting.
Jordan
International forces slated to be deployed to Gaza under US President Donald Trump’s ceasefire plan will not be willing to actually enforce a peace in the war-torn territory, Jordan’s King Abdullah predicted in an interview with the BBC published Monday. “What is the mandate of security forces inside of Gaza? And we hope that it is peacekeeping, because if it’s peace-enforcing, nobody will want to touch that,” said Abdullah, on the UK broadcaster’s Panorama program.
Lebanon
Times of Israel: Lebanon has used up all of its explosives blowing up Hezbollah arms caches
Lebanon’s army has blown up so many Hezbollah arms caches that it has run out of explosives, as it races to meet a year-end deadline to disarm the Shiite terror group in the south of the country under a ceasefire agreed with Israel, two sources told Reuters. The explosives shortage, which has not been previously reported, has not stopped the army quickening the pace of inspection missions to search for hidden weapons in the south, near Israel’s border, the two said, one of whom is a security source and the other a Lebanese official.
Naharnet: Aoun reportedly agrees to adding 'civilians' to indirect talks with Israel
U.S. envoy Morgan Ortagus has proposed in her meetings with Lebanese leaders to involve civilians in indirect negotiations between Lebanon and Israel through the ceasefire monitoring committee, media reports said.
Syria
Soufan Center: Islamic State Wages a Guerrilla Insurgency Throughout Eastern Syria
Nearly a year after longtime Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad was toppled by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a rebel faction aligned at one point with al-Qaeda, the Islamic State seized upon power vacuums within the country to recruit new members, launch fresh attacks, and destabilize Ahmed al-Sharaa’s nascent government. After the fall of Assad, Islamic State fighters capitalized on the ensuing chaos to loot arms depots and ammunition storage sights, replenishing their arsenal and reequipping an insurgent force of several thousand fighters. During its reign, the Islamic State amassed a fortune of hundreds of millions of dollars and, although its so-called caliphate has been destroyed, its network still likely has access to funding, certainly enough to allow the group to wage a low-level guerilla warfare campaign in perpetuity.
New Region: SDF meets to discuss fighting ISIS in Deir ez-Zor
he Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) held an “expanded meeting” on Wednesday to discuss plans to confront the Islamic State (ISIS) in the eastern Deir ez-Zor province, amid continued attacks by the jihadists on security forces. In a statement, the SDF said its Deir ez-Zor Military Council met to “assess the current security situation in the region and discuss mechanisms for improving combat readiness. They also developed new plans to enhance coordination between the military councils and field units to counter ISIS cells.”
Pakistan
Bridge Chronicle: Pakistan Clarifies Salman Khan's Balochistan Comment Amid Terrorist Allegations
Recently, reports surfaced that actor Salman Khan was labeled a terrorist by Pakistan following his comments suggesting Balochistan is distinct from the country. However, Pakistan's Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has now clarified the situation.
News 18: Pakistan Carries Out Late-Night Airstrikes In Balochistan, 14 BLA Militants Killed
Pakistan’s security forces conducted late-night airstrikes on suspected militant hideouts in Balochistan’s Chiltan Mountain region near Quetta, killing at least 14 members of the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), sources told CNN-News18. The operation, described as a “precision aerial strike", targeted BLA militants reportedly sheltering in remote mountain camps. Sources said the group had been under surveillance for several days before being engaged by Pakistani aircraft in the early hours of Wednesday.
Mali
Reuters: US warns citizens in Mali to leave country immediately
The United States warned Americans in Mali on Tuesday to leave the country immediately using commercial flights, as its government comes under increasing pressure from al Qaeda-linked insurgents, who are imposing a fuel blockade. Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin militants announced a blockade on fuel imports to the landlocked West African country in early September. They have since attacked convoys of fuel tankers attempting to enter the country or reach the capital, Bamako.
Sudan
Reuters: Five volunteers killed in Sudan while distributing food, IFRC says
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) said on Tuesday that five of its volunteers were killed in Sudan and three others are missing. The five volunteers were killed on October 27 in the city of Bara in the central state of North Kordofan while distributing food and wearing official vests, it said. It did not give details on how they were killed or assign responsibility.
Wall Street Journal: How U.A.E. Arms Bolstered a Sudanese Militia Accused of Genocide
U.S. intelligence agencies say the United Arab Emirates sent increasing supplies of weapons including sophisticated Chinese drones to a major Sudanese militia this year, bolstering a group that has been accused of genocide and pouring fuel on a conflict that has created one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.
Technology
As a deal to split off TikTok’s U.S. business is set to be finalized between President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday, antisemitism experts expressed mixed views over how likely the agreement will be in transforming the social media platform’s approach when it comes to combating the spread of antisemitism in its algorithm.
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