Eye on Extremism: September 23, 2025
Top Stories
New York Times: Trump Signs Order Targeting Antifa Movement
President Trump signed an executive order on Monday targeting the left-wing antifascist movement, known as antifa, threatening “investigatory and prosecutorial action” against those who financially support it. But Mr. Trump’s order said that he was declaring antifa a “domestic terrorist organization” — a designation that does not actually exist under U.S. law. Anti-fascism, like fascism itself, is a broad political ideology rather than a specific organization, and the U.S. does not have a domestic terrorism law. Even though the language of Mr. Trump’s executive order echoes those he has aimed at foreign criminal organizations like Latin American drug cartels and gangs, it lacks the same teeth.
Thomas Strobl (65, CDU), Interior Minister of Baden-Württemberg, to BILD: "We are currently seeing left-wing extremist terror in Germany again. We are facing enormous security policy challenges in this area. For me, this explicitly includes the area of anti-Semitism: here, too, we are at least on the threshold of terror." In addition to acts of violence at anti-Israel demonstrations and threats against Jews and Jewish and Israeli institutions, Strobl refers to an attack in Baden-Württemberg: on September 8, three men and two women (23-39 years old) broke into a branch of the Israeli arms company Elbit in Ulm, vandalized rooms, set off smoke bombs and finally daubed walls with anti-Israel slogans.
CEP Mentions
Middle East Forum: Mohammed bin Shams al-Din: A Germany-Based YouTube Preacher of Hate
Hans-Jakob Schindler, senior director of the Counter Extremism Project (CEP), notes that Islamist extremists are skilled at exploiting legal loopholes in Europe, citing imprisoned British Islamist preacher Anjem Choudary as a key example. “Anjem Choudary magically knew everyone who was a terrorist and going toward these groups in the U.K. over three decades. It took half a dozen attempts before the guy was actually in prison, because he was very smart in the way he formulated his messaging,” Schindler said, adding that Choudary “was very deliberate in how far he would take those contacts. He would radicalize the people, but once they became terrorists, they no longer had any contact with him.
DW News: Is Israel's aim of destroying Hamas achievable?
Counter Extremism Project Senior Director Dr. Hans-Jakob Schindler interviewed: Israel's ground assault on Gaza City is supposed to wipe out Hamas's remaining strongholds. But the group has shown remarkable resilience over nearly two years of war and may even be gaining new recruits.
Analysis
NPR: Trump has designated 'antifa' a terrorist group. Here are the questions that raises
Current law does provide for the designation of some groups as "foreign terrorist organizations," a process that lies with the State Department. It is through this mechanism that al-Qaida and ISIS, for example, have landed on the public list that the department regularly updates. To qualify for this designation, an organization must be based overseas; it must be a cohesive entity engaged in terrorist activity; and it must be a threat to U.S. national security interests. No similar list or process exists for domestic groups.
War On The Rocks: What Antifa Is, What It Isn’t, and Why It Matters
Antifa has no centralized leadership structure or formalized membership. In the United States, some anti-fascist groups share ideas by participating in the Torch Network, which evolved out of the old Anti-Racist Action Network. But, neither the Torch Network nor popular anarchist websites such as It’s Going Down and CrimethInc. exert any command and control over local activists. Instead, like-minded supporters coordinate autonomously — typically in small, tight-knit groups — with other activists they know and trust. Internal decision-making is based on group consensus and direct democracy. Activists communicate face to face and through social media and encrypted apps like Signal. These and other operational security practices are meant to protect activists from unwanted attention by the police and white supremacists.
New York Times: Recognition or Not, a Palestinian State Seems More Remote Than Ever
France, Britain and the other countries recognizing a Palestinian state this week say they aim to salvage whatever hope remains for the internationally backed formula to end the half-century-old conflict between Israelis and Palestinians: a Jewish state of Israel at peace with a neighboring Palestinian one.But nearly two years into the devastating war in the Gaza Strip, Israelis and Palestinians alike say the possibility of a two-state solution seems more remote than ever.
United States
Reuters: Trump to meet officials from Muslim-majority countries to discuss Gaza
U.S. President Donald Trump will meet leaders and officials from multiple Muslim-majority countries on Tuesday and discuss the situation in Gaza, which has been under a mounting assault from Washington's ally Israel. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Monday that Trump will hold a multilateral meeting with Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Egypt, Jordan, Turkey, Indonesia and Pakistan. A person familiar with the matter said Gaza will be discussed. Axios reported Trump will present the group with a proposal for peace and post-war governance in Gaza. In addition to freeing hostages and ending the war, Trump is expected to discuss U.S. plans around an Israeli withdrawal and post-war governance in Gaza, without Hamas involvement, according to Axios.
A fire at a Chabad in Florida ahead of Rosh Hashanah that destroyed a classroom is being investigated as a hate crime, according to local police. The fire broke out late Friday night following Shabbat services at the Chabad of Charlotte County in Punta Gorda, Florida, charring a children’s classroom, according to the center’s director, Rabbi Simon Jacobson. “This is terrible, but we will turn it into something positive,” Jacobson told local outlet the Daily Sun. “This to me is the epitome of darkness. The only way to get rid of darkness is to enhance the light, to do something good.”
USA Today: Extremist Active Club network uses fitness to recruit its members
U.S. born extremism is on the rise and spreading beyond our borders. The U.S.-based Active Club network is now taking root across the globe. Active Clubs are one of the latest iterations of extremist groups blending physical training, such as mixed marital arts, with fascism. What led to the creation of these clubs that use something as innocuous as fitness as a recruitment tool for teaching hate?
RealClearDefense: U.S. Exercises Self-Defense To Destroy Narco-Terrorist Boats
On September 2, U.S. armed forces struck an identified narco-terrorist fast boat in international waters transiting at high speed in the Caribbean Sea. The vessel reportedly carried on board eleven persons who were members of Tren de Aragua (TdA), a designated terrorist organization under U.S. law.
The Hill: Florida AG launches ‘combat violent extremism’ portal
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced a new tool for “combating violent extremism” in a news conference in Orlando on Monday. Uthmeier was joined by Statewide Prosecutor Brad McVay, Education Commissioner Anastasios Kamoutsas and Valencia College Board Member Michael Sasso for the announcement. Uthmeier said the portal will be used by Floridians to “report anything they observe or hear that is a call for violence, or a threat of violence against other individuals.” They can remain anonymous and submit screenshots, videos and “other evidence of threats of violent extremism.”
Latin America
Prominent British far-right activist Tommy Robinson said he was barred from entering Colombia after being deemed a “threat to national security.” The nationalist anti-immigrant campaigner, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, said he was then detained by Panamanian authorities after taking a flight from Bogotá to Panama City, before being deported back to the United Kingdom. Robinson, who said he was flying to South America as a tourist, is one of Britain’s most renowned far-right figureheads, recently organizing a massive nationalist rally in London.
Europe
Jerusalem Post: Fueled by billionaire money, Europe’s far-right reaches heights
Europe is facing deep political turmoil as far-right movements surge to levels unseen since before World War II, fueled by billionaire donations and amplified on social media. In France, billionaires Vincent Bolloré and Pierre-Édouard Stérin donated millions to Marine Le Pen, who is described as antisemitic, and to far-right projects. In Germany, AfD gained significant state funds, as public financing grows with a party’s popularity. Elon Musk also poured large sums into the German far-right, while donating to Giorgia Meloni in Italy and Nigel Farage in Britain and amplifying their messages through X/Twitter.
France
French President Emmanuel Macron’s recognition of a Palestinian state on Monday drew fierce rebuke from Franco-Israelis, who found the move exasperating and incomprehensible. “I led Macron’s campaign in Israel and today we are truly ashamed and angry,” said Nitay Kimron, 40, who moved to Israel 21 years ago. He said the move “would have been welcome at another time, under different circumstances… but after October 2023 and under the current circumstances, to us it seems like a reward for terrorism,” he told AFP by telephone, referring to the Hamas-led attack that started the ongoing Gaza war.
New York Times: World Leaders Recognize Palestinian State, in a Challenge to U.S. and Israel
The Israeli ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, told reporters, “We will take action” in response to the announcements. He declined to say if that would mean, as some Israeli officials have suggested, expanded settlements or outright annexations in the territory that has been envisioned as a Palestinian state. Israel’s response, he said, would be announced by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who will address the United Nations gathering and meet this week with President Trump. Mr. Netanyahu said in a statement on Sunday, “A Palestinian state will not be established west of the Jordan River.”
Germany
BZ: Attack on Berlin synagogue planned - Convicted IS terrorist appeals against deportation
He spent five years in prison because he wanted to recruit suicide bombers for the Islamic State terrorist organization in Germany and apparently also planned an attack on a Berlin synagogue. Now the convicted IS terrorist is to be deported to Syria. Abdulhadi B. (37) filed a lawsuit against this deportation. The hearing began on Friday at the Regensburg Administrative Court (Bavaria). Abdulhadi B. raised his right index finger as he entered the courtroom and showed the so-called "tauhid finger". This is actually a harmless gesture among Muslims, but in the context of the terrorist organization Islamic State (IS) it is a sign of radicalization. After his detention, Abdulhadi B. could not initially be deported to his home country for humanitarian reasons. The refugee had applied for asylum several times, but in the meantime his deportation was ordered. He has now appealed against this decision.
Deutsche Welle: Germany walks tightrope over recognizing state of Palestine
The German government is faced with a particular dilemma when it comes to Israel and a Palestinian state. As a consequence of the 6 million Jews murdered during the Nazi era, Berlin feels a special responsibility for Israel's security and has even declared this to be a matter of "reason of state." For the German chancellor, this is clearly not just empty rhetoric. Earlier in September, during a speech at the reopening of a synagogue in Munich that had been destroyed by the Nazis, Merz fought back tears as he said "since October 7, we have been experiencing a new wave of antisemitism, in old and new guises, blatant and poorly concealed, in words and deeds, on social media, at universities, in public spaces. I would like to tell you how ashamed this makes me, as chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, but also as a German, as a child of the postwar generation, a child who grew up with the motto 'Never again' as a mission, a duty, a promise."
Barrons: German Far-right AfD Firebrand Sees 'Common Ground' With US
He is often described as the most radical face of Germany's far-right AfD party, has called for the "remigration" of foreigners and been convicted of using a banned Nazi slogan. But Bjoern Hoecke, 53, head of the Alternative for Germany in the eastern state of Thuringia, is convinced he is on the correct path amid a lurch to the right around the Western world led by US President Donald Trump.
Italy
Reuters: Pro-Palestinian protesters fight police in Milan, Italian ports blocked
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni condemned the scenes in Milan, Italy's financial capital and co-host of the Winter Olympics next February. "(This was) violence and destruction that have nothing to do with solidarity and will not change the lives of people in Gaza by a fraction, but will have concrete consequences for Italian citizens who will end up suffering and paying for the damage caused by these hooligans," she said on X. More than 10 people were arrested in Milan and around 60 police officers suffered bruising or more serious injuries, Italy's ANSA news agency reported.
United Kingdom
GB News: Thousands of Isis terrorists could be freed 'at any minute' in dire warning to Britain
Britain could be flooded with tens of thousands of Isis terrorists if a new group takes charge of their holding camps, Syrian authorities have warned. As many as 35,000 captured Isis soldiers have been held in detention facilities by the Syrian Defence Force (SDF) since the terror group suffered dramatic losses in 2019. More than 8,000 foreign former jihadists are still detained at the camps, including British-born Shamima Begum, who travelled to Syria in 2015 with two classmates to join the terror group. The two main detention camps in the country are al-Roj, where thousands of foreign-born terrorists and their families are holed up, and al-Hol, which holds over 32,000 Syrian and Iraqi terrorists and their families.
Turkey
Middle East Eye: Turkey to train Niger army in fight against militant groups
Turkey will soon deploy troops to help train Niger's military to counter militant groups as Ankara increasingly turns its focus to Africa, Middle East Eye understands. Sources familiar with the matter told MEE that Turkey has been pursuing a closer security partnership with Niger since 2020, when the countries signed a military training and cooperation agreement. In July 2023, Niger's military ousted the civilian government, promising to address terrorism and other security issues. By cancelling security deals with western partners, the junta signalled its search for new alliances such as Turkey and Russia. In July, Turkey and Niger also signed a military financial cooperation agreement, further solidifying their commitment to work together in defence.
Israel
It can also be argued that the wave of recognitions also makes the release of the hostages and the end to the suffering of Gaza’s civilians harder to attain. Hamas isn’t going to free the hostages and agree to disarm if holding out means snowballing international pressure on Israel and growing achievements for the Palestinian cause. On the ground, Palestinians can expect little improvement as a result of the wave of recognitions. The war in Gaza won’t be shortened by it, and Hamas won’t be sidelined.
Times of Israel: IDF bolsters fronts as commander warns of West Bank escalation over holiday
Israel sent reinforcements in the form of combat trainees to various fronts on Monday, as a senior military official warned of potential friction in the West Bank over the Jewish holiday season, which kicks off Monday night with Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. The chief of the IDF Central Command, Maj. Gen. Avi Bluth warned Sunday night of an escalation due to the convergence of multiple factors, including “political declarations” — an apparent reference to the recognition of a Palestinian state by Western nations, and Israeli leaders considering annexing parts of the West Bank in response.
Earlier this month, four Israeli researchers issued a 300-page report published by Bar-Ilan University’s Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies (BESA) that seeks to refute the genocide allegations. The authors include military historians Prof. Danny Orbach of the Hebrew University and Dr. Yagil Henkin of Shalem College and the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy, independent scholar and quantitative analysis expert Dr. Jonathan Boxman, and lawyer Jonathan Braverman, an expert in international humanitarian law. The study focused to a large degree on the most damaging charge against Israel: That it has deliberately starved the civilian population of Gaza by restricting aid.
Gaza Strip
In a village south of Khan Younis, emptied by months of fighting, a 50-year-old former Palestinian Authority officer is carving out what appears to be the latest attempt to pare back Hamas’s power in the Strip, establishing a small, armed enclave that promises an alternative to the terror group with the quiet support of Israel and the West. Hossam al-Astal, a resident of Khan Younis, recently announced the formation of a militia he calls Strike Force Against Terror. From his base in Kizan al-Najjar — a depopulated village near Khan Younis — he is inviting displaced Gazans to live under his protection. He offers food, water, shelter, and freedom from Hamas, which has ruled the enclave for nearly two decades.
Jerusalem Post: UNRWA ignored Hamas ties in schools, fostering terrorism – UN Watch report
UNRWA turned a blind eye as Hamas terror chiefs held top positions within the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) educational system and promoted terrorism and radicalization, a scathing new report by the watchdog UN Watch has revealed. UNRWA raises over $1 billion annually from Western states under the stated aim of educating Palestinian children with values such as peace, tolerance, and universal human rights. However, the report argued that "by knowingly employing Hamas terrorist leaders as school principals and teachers, and by allowing terror chiefs to head the unions that oversee thousands of their teachers, UNRWA didn’t just tolerate extremism, the Western-funded UN agency institutionalized it, turning classrooms into incubators of hate."
Syria
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, visiting New York for the UN General Assembly, voiced hope Monday for a security deal that eases tensions with Israel but he played down the prospect of recognition. Sharaa, formerly the head of a jihadi group affiliated with al-Qaeda whose forces toppled longtime leader Bashar al-Assad in December, met US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and later will deliver the first address in decades by a Syrian leader to the General Assembly. Syrian officials have set a goal of reaching military and security agreements by the end of the year with Israel, with the two countries remaining formally in a state of war rooted in territorial disputes, military confrontations and deep-seated political mistrust.
Mozambique
Agence France-Presse: Civilians Beheaded In New Attack On Mozambique Port Town
Insurgents linked to the Islamic State group attacked a key Mozambique port town near a major international gas hub early Monday, beheading several civilians, locals reported. It was the second attack this month on Mocimboa da Praia, which is around 80 kilometers (50 miles) south of a stalled multi-billion-dollar liquefied natural gas project operated by French energy giant TotalEnergies.
Technology
Semafor: House committee prods social media platforms about extremist activity
In identical letters sent Monday to the CEOs of Discord, Twitch, Reddit, and to the chief operating officer of Microsoft-owned GitHub — copies of which were viewed by Semafor — the committee asked for documents and explanations for how they monitor and flag extremist content, share threats with law enforcement, and audit their platforms for vulnerabilities.
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