(New York, N.Y.) — The Counter Extremism Project (CEP) reports weekly on the methods used by extremists and terrorist groups on the Internet to spread propaganda and incite violence. Last week, white supremacist Active Club Telegram and X accounts celebrated their annual “Frontier” boxing and MMA event the weekend of August 24. Additionally, a California Active Club celebrated that one of their members participated in a mainstream MMA tournament that was broadcast via pay-per-view.
On Telegram, several channel administrators expressed worry following charges being filed against the app’s CEO, Pavel Durov, noting that this could impact their place on the platform and suggesting alternatives.
Following a report from CEP, CashApp removed a fundraising campaign from a Pacific Northwest chapter of the White Lives Matter movement.
CEP researchers also located a white power online store advertising on Telegram. While CEP has located ads on extreme right Telegram channels beginning in May, this was the first time researchers located an explicitly extreme right business advertising on the platform.
Al-Qaeda videos showing the Barsalogho, Burkina Faso massacre were located. CEP also reported a large quantity of content to the Internet Archive, including several explosives manuals from the pro-ISIS al-Saqri Foundation and a video containing step-by-step instructions for the homemade synthesis of explosives. The Internet Archive removed the content following CEP’s report. Finally, CEP researchers also located web posters on ChirpWire from al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula affiliated al-Malahem Media that encouraged acts of terrorism.
Active Clubs Note Annual Southern California Meet Up
Active Club Telegram and X accounts noted that the annual “Frontier” boxing and MMA event occurred on August 24 or 25. As in prior years, the Southern California Active Club chapter hosted the fight night event, claiming it took place in the Inland Empire area. Frontier is the main Active Club networking event in the U.S., where members of different chapters, as well as allies in other white supremacist groups, compete in combat sports and network with each other. The event is also an opportunity for the creation of propaganda images and videos. A message posted on August 30 claimed that this year’s Frontier event, the third held in California, was the group’s largest.
In addition to the Southern California chapter, at least eight other Active Clubs posted affirming their participation in or attendance of the tournament, including chapters from Texas; Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, and the Dakotas; Arizona; Wyoming; Pennsylvania; Idaho and Washington; North Idaho; and Quebec, Canada. Photos of the event also show individuals who are likely members of Patriot Front and the Western Hammerskins.
Channels noted that the Active Club-linked propaganda group would eventually have a video showcasing the events, however, this was not released by September 3. The video for Frontier 2023 was not released until January 2024.
California Active Club Member Participates in Pay-Per-View MMA Event
On August 25, a Telegram channel affiliated with a California Active Club chapter bragged that one of their members participated in a mixed martial arts (MMA) event that was televised on pay-per-view. According to his entry with the California Mixed Martial Arts Association (CamoMMA), Mohammad Wadaa, aka Mikhail Markovich, who has a swastika tattoo on his chest, most recently participated in a mainstream MMA event on August 24. According to CamoMMA, Wadaa lost his August match. However, the footage posted by the Active Club Telegram channel appeared to be from an earlier fight held in March, which Wadaa won. The Telegram channel used racist language, referring to Wadaa’s opponent, who had a Latino name, as a “foreign invader.” Active Clubs may seek to have their members participate in mainstream MMA events in order to recruit, get publicity, or attempt to normalize their ideology within the MMA community.
Extreme Right Telegram Channel Administrators Worry About Future Following Arrest of Telegram CEO
The administrators of extreme right Telegram channels expressed concern regarding their future on the communications platform following the arrest of the company’s CEO, Pavel Durov, in France on August 24. Durov was charged on August 28 with multiple crimes, including permitting the spread of child sexual abuse material, content related to drug trafficking and fraud, and not complying with orders from law enforcement.
A neo-Nazi Telegram channel dedicated to information and operations security recommended that users looking for encrypted chat programs use Briar, Session, or XMPP. A chat member affiliated with the channel stated that Telegram would likely remain in some form but that security could easily change, urging users to lower their trust in the communications platform. A channel dedicated to sharing plans for 3D-printed firearms and manuals related to weapons, warfare, and insurgency noted their fear that channels like theirs could be removed in the future. A channel that endorses violence stated that Durov’s arrest “isn’t good for us,” while a channel that endorses white supremacist terrorism posted that the arrest of the Telegram CEO could potentially have adverse outcomes for them.
CashApp Removes Fundraising Account for White Lives Matter Chapter
CEP researchers contacted CashApp on August 28, reporting a fundraising account being used by a white supremacist White Lives Matter (WLM) chapter in the Pacific Northwest to purchase materials for propaganda campaigns. The WLM chapter has advertised its propaganda campaigns on its Telegram channel, including highlighting white supremacist and antisemitic sticker vandalism campaigns in multiple towns. CashApp removed the fundraising account within 24 hours following CEP’s report.
A White Lives Matter (WLM) CashApp account was removed from the site within 24 hours after being reported by CEP. Screenshot taken on August 29.
Neo-Nazi Online Store Advertises on Telegram
CEP researchers found three advertisements from a neo-Nazi online store that advocates violence advertising on Telegram. On August 13, an ad for the store was found on a Telegram channel for a Bulgarian webshop that previously offered to make Active Club flags. On August 27, the ad was found in a Telegram channel with over 11,000 subscribers that promotes Active Clubs and hooliganism. On August 28, the same ad was located in the main Patriot Front Telegram account, which has almost 20,000 subscribers.
The neo-Nazi online store requires an account on their website for viewing explicit extreme-right products. The store, on their Telegram channel, has shown a variety of products that they sell, including neo-Nazi, antisemitic and anti-LGBTQ stickers, antisemitic DVDs, and white power music. Several posts made by the channel endorse violence, including an image stating that “white revolution is the only solution” with an image featuring a handgun and a photo of a man posing with a firearm in front of a flag that uses the acronym RAHOWA (Racial Holy War).
The online store was also endorsed by a Telegram channel connected to a notorious neo-Nazi website that spreads the work of former members of the Atomwaffen Division. On August 20, the website’s channel posted a variety of items they had been sent by the web store, including DVDs that promote Holocaust denial, swastika stickers, yellow stars worn by Jews during the Holocaust, and a variety of neo-Nazi symbols.
While CEP had located advertisements on extreme right Telegram channels beginning in May, August 13 was the first time that an extreme right channel or business was found to have created advertisements to be used on the platform. Telegram announced advertisements on the platform in late March, claiming that channel administrators would receive “50% of the revenue from ads displayed in their channels.”
Framed prints of Adolf Hitler are sold by a website currently advertising on Telegram. The post states, “Create an account to see all bad optics items!” Screenshot taken on August 29.
Al-Qaeda Affiliate Posts Burkina Faso Massacre Videos
On August 27, social media channels affiliated with al-Qaeda propaganda groups posted two videos from Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal Muslimeen (JNIM) that showed the massacre of several dozen individuals near the town of Barsalogho, Burkina Faso. One video showed the execution of dozens of people wearing civilian clothing in a long trench, as well as the killing of clearly wounded people. The cameraperson and other terrorists can be seen leaving on motorcycles following the massacre.
Burkina authorities stated that over 400 people were either directly killed in the attack or later died of their wounds.
Explosives Manuals and Videos Removed from the Internet Archive Following Reporting by CEP
On August 28, CEP researchers located a large quantity of pro-ISIS content, all uploaded by the same user on the Internet Archive, that promoted acts of terrorism. Items included a section from an ISIS video originally released in November 2016 that contains instructions for the homemade synthesis of explosives and construction of bomb-making components. The video was initially uploaded to the site on July 23, 2024, and had 64 views on August 28. CEP also located 12 manuals from the pro-ISIS online group al-Saqri Foundation, which included instructions on the homemade construction of various bombs and detonators for explosive devices. Explosive materials included PETN, HMTD, TATP, and others. The same user also uploaded a large number of other videos and guides, including those offering advice on how to use knives on human targets and how to destroy vehicles. The Internet Archive removed all content uploaded by the user after CEP’s report.
Al-Saqri Foundation explosives guide on the Internet Archive. Screenshot taken on August 28.
Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula Continues Series of Images Encouraging Terrorist Attacks
CEP researchers continued to find posters on ChirpWire from al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula linked al-Malahem Media that encouraged acts of terrorism. Posters encouraged committing attacks in the U.S. and Europe, with one image encouraging acts of terrorism to avenge Gaza, alleging that one or two terrorist attacks would hasten the decline and fall of the U.S.