Reuters: US Declares Tren De Aragua, Other Cartels Are Global Terrorist Organizations
“The United States on Wednesday designated Tren de Aragua, the Sinaloa Cartel and other drug cartels as global terrorist organizations, according to a Federal Register notice, a move that comes as President Donald Trump steps up immigration enforcement against alleged gang members in the U.S. The notice issued by Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the groups pose a risk to U.S. national security, foreign policy and economic interests. Trump, a Republican, issued an executive order after taking office on January 20 that called on officials to evaluate whether any criminal cartels or transnational gangs should be designated as terrorism groups.”
“The families of hostages still held by Hamas in Gaza demanded Wednesday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu explain the lack of progress on stalled negotiations for the second phase of the ceasefire, describing the delays as a “clear and tangible” danger to their loved ones. The statement came the day after an unexpected announcement from Hamas that it would expedite the release of hostages: Instead of letting just three go on Saturday, it said it would free all six of the remaining living hostages who are supposed to be released during the agreement’s first phase.”
CPAC: Mark Wallace To Speak At CPAC In DC 2025
“Mark Wallace, former United States Ambassador to the United Nations for Management and Reform, is a confirmed speaker for CPAC in DC 2025. Before his career in the United Nations, Wallace served in several high-ranking government positions, including the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). As United States Ambassador to the United Nations for Management and Reform, a role in which he served from 2006 to 2009, he notably exposed the “Cash for Kim” scandal in North Korea. He currently serves as the CEO of the Counter Extremism Project.”
Frankfurter Rundschau: “Hybrid Warfare Before Elections”: Russia’s Involvement In The Munich Attack
“Berlin – Several attacks within a few months : That can definitely change a society. The attacks in Solingen, Mannheim, Aschaffenburg, Magdeburg and most recently in Munich were probably motivated by extremism, the majority of them probably Islamist. In several cases, asylum seekers were the perpetrators, including the car attack in Munich in which a mother and her two-year-old child were killed and dozens of people were injured, some seriously… Hans-Jakob Schindler is aware of the theory of Russian agents in Afghanistan. "That is entirely possible, we had corresponding indications," said the director of the NGO Counter Extremism Project (CEP) in an interview with this editorial team. However, this cannot currently be proven, said the terrorism expert.”
Tysol.Pl: "Russia Pays Knife Men To Disrupt Societies In The West With Attacks?"
“German media are reporting that immigrants who allegedly had contacts with Russia could have been behind the recent attacks. However, experts currently have no evidence to confirm their suspicions. "Russia is paying knife-wielding people to break up societies in the West with attacks," Aleksandra Fedorska, editor-in-chief of the Radio Debata agency, commented on the German media reports… It's quite possible, we had the right premises– said Hans Jakob Schindler, director of the non-governmental organization Counter Extremism Project. However, according to the expert on terrorism and the Middle East, this cannot be proven at the moment.”
“There are numerous AfD advertising items on Amazon – right next to fan material for right-wing extremists. Experts consider this form of election advertising to be highly problematic. Berlin – Shortly before the federal election, the online mail order company Amazon is being flooded with AfD promotional items . There are numerous T-shirts and hoodies with the party logo, buttons and stickers with slogans. We reported on AfD merchandise on Amazon a year ago, but one shop suddenly disappeared during our research . But new ones have been added: Often, shipping is done directly via the Amazon service “Merch on Demand”… Articles from other parties cannot be found on Amazon. Experts are extremely critical of this particular form of election advertising. Extremism expert Hans-Jakob Schindler, director of the Counter Extremism Project, told our editorial team: "The AfD is pursuing a normalization strategy. The technical term for remigration is 'ethnic cleansing'. And now the party is using it officially and it is being printed on merchandise. That is more than worrying."”
Crime Squared: The Trial Of The Knife Attack On The Mannheim Market Square
“The people of Mannheim have been waiting for this trial for months, one of the largest trials in Mannheim's history: On February 13th, the trial against Sulaiman A. began at the Higher Regional Court in Stuttgart - the man who is said to have committed the knife attack on the Mannheim market square on May 31st, 2024. The police officer Rouven Laur was so seriously injured that he died. Other people also sustained injuries, some of them serious - including Michael Stürzenberger, the well-known critic of Islam.”
“U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will skip a two-day meeting of foreign ministers from the leading rich and developing nations that starts on Thursday after criticizing host South Africa’s policies as anti-American. Instead, Rubio was headed back to the United States on Wednesday from his first trip to the Middle East as America’s chief diplomat, and after leading a U.S. delegation in talks with Russia in Saudi Arabia over the war in Ukraine. Rubio spoke with the foreign ministers of France, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom and the European Union’s foreign policy chief to brief them immediately after Tuesday’s meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, the State Department said.”
The Guardian: Off Air: One By One, The Taliban Are Removing Women’s Voices From Afghan Radio
“When the Taliban began marching towards cities across Afghanistan in the summer of 2021, Alia*, a 22-year-old Afghan journalist, found herself doing some of the most important work of her short life and career. In the weeks leading up to the Taliban takeover in August, Alia’s voice on the radio became familiar to many in northern Afghanistan. She reported on the withdrawal of foreign troops, the siege of government offices and on the detention of former officials in her province. Above all, Alia reported on the situation for women and their fears and concerns – emotions she was experiencing herself. As the Taliban gradually began imposing restrictions on them, Alia was documenting history repeating itself.”
“Authorities have stepped up arrests of Afghan citizens in Pakistan’s capital and a nearby city in an effort that the Afghan Embassy in Islamabad described on Wednesday as a push to force the expulsion of all Afghan refugees from the country. Pakistan’s foreign ministry promptly dismissed the allegation, saying that the authorities were only trying to facilitate conditions for the swift return of Afghans to their home country. Pakistan has long threatened to deport Afghans living in the country illegally. Separately, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif last month approved a March 31 deadline to deport those awaiting relocation to third countries unless their cases are swiftly processed by the governments that have agreed to take them, according to a document obtained by The Associated Press.”
The New York Times: Hamas Hands Bodies Of 4 Hostages Back To Israel
“Hamas said on Thursday it had handed over the bodies of four Israelis abducted during the Oct. 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel — including a woman and her two young children — in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. Large crowds had gathered near the southern Gazan city of Khan Younis to watch the choreographed handoff staged by Hamas. Rifle-toting gunmen were deployed around a stage on which four black coffins — each bearing the image of a deceased hostage — had been placed. Officials with the International Committee for the Red Cross placed the coffins in waiting white vehicles. The Israeli government later confirmed that the Red Cross had brought them to waiting Israeli forces inside Gaza.”
Associated Press: Palestinian Families Flee West Bank Homes In Droves As Israel Confronts Militants
“By car and on foot, through muddy olive groves and snipers’ sight lines, tens of thousands of Palestinians in recent weeks have fled Israeli military operations across the northern West Bank — the largest displacement in the occupied territory since the 1967 Mideast war. After announcing a widespread crackdown against West Bank militants on Jan. 21 — just two days after its ceasefire deal with Hamas in Gaza — Israeli forces descended on the restive city of Jenin, as they have dozens of times since Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel. But unlike past operations, Israeli forces then pushed deeper and more forcefully into several other nearby towns, including Tulkarem, Far’a and Nur Shams, scattering families and stirring bitter memories of the 1948 war over Israel’s creation.”
“An Israeli official said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has appointed a close confidant to lead negotiations for the second stage of the ceasefire with Hamas. The U.S.-born Ron Dermer is a Cabinet minister who’s widely seen as Netanyahu’s closest adviser. He previously served as Israel’s ambassador to the U.S. and is a former Republican activist with strong ties to the Trump White House. Israel and Hamas have yet to negotiate the second and more difficult phase of the ceasefire, and the first ends in early March. Palestinians and Arab countries have universally rejected U.S. President Donald Trump’s proposal to remove the Palestinian population from Gaza and take over the territory.”
“Austrian investigators have arrested a 14-year-old who was planning an attack at a railway station in Vienna and found material that suggested he supported the Islamic State group, authorities said Wednesday. The Interior Ministry said that the boy, an Austrian with Turkish roots, was arrested in the capital on Feb. 10 and had been radicalized online. The arrest was triggered by tips to Austrian intelligence that a supporter of IS had posted stories and videos with Islamic extremist content on several TikTok profiles. The suspect was identified and prosecutors ordered his arrest on suspicion of membership in a terrorist group or criminal organization.”
“Kirsty Rosse-Emile is a 30-year-old mother from Melbourne who likes hip-hop music, NBA basketball, fitness and nutrition. She lives in a place known as Australia Street, with dozens of other Australians, but it's far, far from her home country. Australia Street is in a camp deep in the Syrian desert, 30 kilometres from the Iraqi border. Ms Rosse-Emile has been detained in the camps for six years, after being captured by Kurdish forces when they defeated the Islamic State terror group in March 2019. The two detainees interviewed by the ABC in Al Roj camp, Ms Rosse-Emile and her friend Zeinab Ahmed, 29, refused to talk about how and why they came to be living under the Islamic State in Syria.”
Bloomberg: Australia's Growing Youth Radicalization
“Australia’s spy chief revealed almost all foiled terrorist attacks over the past year involved the radicalization of children. In his annual threat assessment, the Security Intelligence Organisation Director-General Mike Burgess said the threat of terrorism and politically-motivated violence is rising, with individuals as young as 12 “self-radicalizing” through complicated and contradictory systems of belief. There are probably more than 1 million underage users in Australia on leading social media platforms such as Meta Platforms, TikTok, Snapchat , a regulatory report said, highlighting the scale of policy failure at the companies before the country enforces unprecedented user age limits this year.”
Extremists: Their Words. Their Actions.
Fact:
On October 7, 2023, Hamas invaded southern Israel where, in the space of eight hours, hundreds of armed terrorists perpetrated mass crimes of brutality, rape, and torture against men, women and children. In the biggest attack on Jewish life in a single day since the Holocaust, 1,200 were killed, and 251 were taken hostage into Gaza—where 101 remain. One year on, antisemitic incidents have increased by record numbers.
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