Southern Poverty Law Center found 1020 hate groups in USA in 2018 – the amount of hate groups in USA is at all-time high.
Read more from Southern Poverty Law Center’s Intelligence Report:
https://www.splcenter.org/sites/default/files/intelligence_report_166.pdf
According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the average number of violent incidents instigated by Jewish settlers each month have increased by 57 per cent in 2018, when compared with 2017, and by staggering 175 per cent, when compared with 2016.
Read the full story on Al Jazeera:
USA has had military cooperation with radical groups particularly in the Middle East. However, the cooperation with far-right parties and militia groups, such as Azov Battalion, in Ukraine may have been one of the most controversial and it may also backfire handsomely.
The Azov Battalion, or Azov Regiment, is one of many privately-funded volunteer battalions that were formed during the crisis in Ukraine in 2014 (1). Far-right volunteers from different parts of the world joined Azov Battalion. Azov Battalion has benefited from the funding, weapons and training USA has provided for Ukrainian military groups. Azov has gradually developed into a far-right, neo-Nazi movement with street-patrolling militia and own youth camp (1, 2, 3, 4, 5). Because of the neo-Nazi element of the battalion, US Congressmen John Conyers and Ted Yoho drew up an amendment to House Defense Appropriations bill in 2015. The amendment “limits arms, training, and other assistance to the neo-Nazi Ukrainian militia, the Azov Battalion” and it was passed unanimously. However, US Department of Defense objected the amendment. The ban to give any kind of support or training to Azov Battalion finally came to force last year. (3, 4)
The Azov Movement and other similar far-right groups and parties have become increasingly severe problem in Ukraine. Their militia groups have been allowed to be some sort of part of law enforcement and they have attacked minority groups, often with impunity. There have also been attacks on anti-fascist groups, city council meetings, media outlets, art exhibitions, foreign students and women’s marches (1, 5).
The Azov Movement also wants to extend its cooperation with other far-right radical groups in Europe and North America. Olena Semenyaka, the international secretary for Azov’s political wing, the National Corps, says that Azov has gained popularity and become “small state in a state” in Ukraine. Semenyaka believes that in the current climate it is possible that far-right leaders can come to power in Europe and Azov wants to form coalitions and be in front of the far-right movement. There has also been more and more cooperation with American neo-Nazis and other right-wing extremists. According to FBI, Azov’s military wing is “believed to have participated in training and radicalizing United States-based white supremacy organizations.” (5)
References:
1) “Commentary: Ukraine’s neo-Nazi problem” Reuters 19.3.2018
2) “Foreigners join far-right militias in Ukraine’s fight against rebels” The Irish Times 17.7.2014
3) “Congress Has Removed a Ban on Funding Neo-Nazis From Its Year-End Spending Bill” The Nation 14.1.2016
4) “Congress bans arms to Ukraine militia linked to neo-Nazis” The Hill 27.3.2018
5) “Azov, Ukraine’s Most Prominent Ultranationalist Group, Sets Its Sights On U.S., Europe” Radio Free Europe 14.11.2018
It has been quite unbelievable to read news about Brexit and the political situation in Britain, lately. I lived in Britain over 10 years, but Britain seems to have changed beyond recognition – and not in a good way.
Today’s perhaps most stunning news was about hardline Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg, who reportedly suggested that PM May “should close parliament temporarily if necessary to stop MPs passing a bill blocking a no-deal Brexit.” (1)
Another worrying news was about the threat posed by far right. Britain’s counter-terrorism chief Neil Basu said that “the far right will exploit Brexit tensions with their propaganda triggering rises in hate crime and creating an atmosphere that terrorists can exploit.” Mr Basu continued:
“My concern is the polarisation, and I fear the far-right politicking and rhetoric leads to a rise in hate crime and a rise in disorder.” (2)
References:
1) “May should close parliament if necessary to stop bill blocking no deal Brexit, says Rees-Mogg – Politics live” The Guardian 23.1.2019
2) “Far right may exploit Brexit tensions, says UK counter-terror chief” The Guardian 23.1.2019
Daily Sabah reported yesterday that the German authorities have conducted raids in several parts of Germany on suspected members of a far-right group called the National Socialist Knights of the Ku Klux Klan Deutschland. According to authorities, about 40 people are under investigation. The group’s members are suspected of glorifying Nazism and in some cases harboring “violent fantasies” (1).
Quite surprisingly, Ku Klux Klan is not a new addition on the far-right scene in Germany. German journalist Frederick Obermaier has been investigating the Ku Klux Klan in Germany and he has written a book about it (2). Obermaier told in an interview in 2017 that the German authorities have been aware of some KKK activity in Germany for decades. However, the amount of KKK members in Germany has been very small compared to USA. According to Obermaier, there have been “close relations” between US Klan groups and German Klan groups over the past 30 or 40 years. The German groups admire the American Klan and hope to become as big as the KKK in USA (3).
While Obermaier was reporting about the killing spree committed by National Socialist Underground NSU between 2000 and 2007, he found links to the Ku Klux Klan in Germany (3). Süddeutsche Zeitung told in 2016 that the only living member of the NSU terror cell, Beate Zschäbe, had reportedly attended at least two KKK gatherings (4). The NSU murdered 10 people, mostly Turkish immigrants, between 2000 and 2007 (5).
References:
1) “Police probe 40 members of German Ku Klux Klan” Daily Sabah 17.1.2019
https://www.dailysabah.com/europe/2019/01/17/police-probe-40-members-of-german-ku-klux-klan
2) Obermaier, Frederick & Schulz, Tanjev: Kapuzenmänner: Der Ku-Klux-Klan in Deutschland. DTV Premium, Munich 2017.
3) “‘The KKK is active here in Germany'” Deutsche Welle 22.2.2017
https://www.dw.com/en/the-kkk-is-active-here-in-germany/a-37668846
4) “Four Ku Klux Klan groups active in Germany, says govt” The Local.de 25.10.2016
https://www.thelocal.de/20161025/four-ku-klux-klan-groups-in-germany-report-kkk
5) “Neo-Nazi murder gang member jailed for life in Germany” Reuters 11.7.2018
Britain’s decision to leave the European Union has turned out to be a chaotic cliffhanger. Brexit has divided the nation, it has torn apart political parties and even families. Britain has also seen significant rise of far-right populism, xenophobia, racism and hate crimes. According to statistics published by the police in England and Wales, over 94 000 hate crime offences were recorded during 2017/18, an increase of 17 % compared to the previous year. The increase during 2016/17 was even greater, 29 %. The number of hate crimes recorded by the police has more than doubled since 2012/13. Even though the increase can be partially explained by improvements in crime recording by the police, there have been clear “spikes” in hate crime after the EU Referendum in 2016 and after the terrorist attacks in 2017 (1, 2, 3, 4).
One form of far-right populism has been the increasingly aggressive activity against politicians and other people who support the Remain option. Tory MP Anna Soubry was intimidated and abused by British far-right mobsters and supporters of Brexit on Monday. The pro-Brexit protesters called remain-backing Soubry “a Nazi”. Mrs Soubry was harassed and intimidated the same way already in December last year (5). Other people harassed on Monday were journalist Owen Jones from The Guardian and Femi Oluwole, chief spokesperson for Our Future, Our Choice. Mr. Oluwole condemned the abuse and threatening behavior of the pro-Brexit protesters. He added:
“Plenty of people around the country are frustrated with the Brexit process – and all but a tiny minority continue to engage in reasonable democratic debate. This debate is absolutely crucial given the vastly different and country-defining options the UK faces. We must be able to have it without feeling like some options are unacceptable because a tiny minority of people are willing to go further, and shout louder, than everyone else. The answer to the far right cannot be to give in. We have never, and will never, let them dictate the terms of debate. When they argue for less democracy, we must call for more.”
However, Mr. Oluwole also condemned aggressive verbal attacks of far-left activists:
“…there’s a key difference between intense political discourse and gratuitous abuse, no matter where you are on the spectrum.” (6)
References:
1) Hate crime, England and Wales, 2017 to 2018 Home Office Statistical Bulletin 20/18
2) “Hate crimes soared after EU referendum, Home Office figures confirm” The Guardian 13.10.2016
3) “Hate-crime reports rise by almost a third in a year as Home Office figures illustrate EU-referendum spike” The Independent 17.10.2017
4) “Hate crime surge linked to Brexit and 2017 terrorist attacks” The Guardian 16.10.2018
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2018/oct/16/hate-crime-brexit-terrorist-attacks-england-wales
5) “MPs raise safety fears with police after Anna Soubry subjected to ‘Nazi’ chants” The Guardian 7.1.2019
6) “I was harassed outside parliament. These thugs must not stifle Brexit debate” The Guardian 9.1.2019
Southern Poverty Law Center publishes annual census of hate groups operating in the USA. The amount of hate groups is now 953. You can see the nature and location of the hate groups in an interactive map:
IDIS Observer 