Our picksTracking of Domestic Extremism | Boko Haram Leader Killed | Advancing Facial Recognition Tech, and more
· U.S. to Ramp up Tracking of Domestic Extremism on Social Media
· German Officer Goes on Trial, Accused of Plotting Far-Right Terrorism
· The Link Between Extremism and Military Functioning
· DHS Plans Next Rally to Advance Facial Recognition Tech
· Centers of Excellence Help DHS Combat Bio Threats, Domestic Terrorism
· Unleashing International Entrepreneurs to Help the U.S. Economy Recover from the Pandemic
· U.S. Troops Are Stuck on the Mexico Border with No End in Sight
· Boko Haram Leader Abubakar Shekau Dies after Clash with IS Terror Group
· Operational Disinformation in Israel and Gaza. Hacks as Blowback, and Implausible Finger-Pointing. What Was that Name, Again?
U.S. to Ramp up Tracking of Domestic Extremism on Social Media (AP / U.S. News)
The Department of Homeland Security plans to ramp up social media tracking as part of an enhanced focus on domestic violent extremism. While the move is a response to weaknesses exposed by the deadly U.S. Capitol insurrection, it’s raising concerns about undermining Americans’ civil liberties. President Joe Biden’s top appointees have called white supremacists the greatest security threat to the country and are pushing for bolstered intelligence gathering. Closely watching are advocates for communities of color and groups that have previously been the focus of intensified surveillance, sometimes unlawfully. DHS in recent weeks has announced a new office in its intelligence branch focusing on domestic extremism and a new center to facilitate “local prevention frameworks” that, according to a statement, can better identify people “who may be radicalizing, or have radicalized, to violence.” The overall effort is in its early stages. The department is exploring partnerships with tech companies, universities, and nonprofit groups to access publicly available data. DHS will also train analysts on tracking social media and how to distinguish a threat from the exercise of free speech.
German Officer Goes on Trial, Accused of Plotting Far-Right Terrorism (Katrin Bennhold, New York Times)
One of postwar Germany’s most spectacular terrorism trials opened Thursday, with federal prosecutors laying out their case against a military officer who they said had been motivated by a “hardened far-right extremist mind-set” to plot political murder in the hope of bringing down the country’s democratic system. The case of First Lieutenant Franco A., whose surname is abbreviated in keeping with German privacy laws, shocked Germany when he was arrested four years ago and has since pushed the country to confront a creeping threat of infiltration in the military and the police by far-right extremists. Franco A. was caught in 2017 trying to collect a loaded gun he had hidden in an airport bathroom. His fingerprints later revealed that he had a second — fake — identity as a Syrian refugee, setting off alarm bells and an investigation that would span three countries and multiple intelligence agencies. (Cont.)
