The Counter Extremism Project (CEP) reports weekly on the methods used by
extremists to exploit the Internet and social media platforms to recruit
followers and incite violence. Last week, ISIS released a new video, "Makers of
Epic Battles 7," depicting attacks on Kurdish and Syrian government vehicles
and brutal execution footage of 25 people. After its release, the short clips
promoting the video gained significant momentum on TikTok, receiving thousands
of views. Concurrently, the pro-ISIS group al-Azaim Media released the latest
issue of the group’s English-language propaganda web magazine, Voice of
Khorasan, while the pro-ISIS Qimam Electronic Foundation (QEF) distributed a
cyber security guide on RocketChat for improving data security.
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Extremist Content Online: ISIS Releases New Propaganda Video, Which is Rapidly
Promoted On TikTok
(New York, N.Y.) — The Counter Extremism Project (CEP) reports weekly on the
methods used by extremists to exploit the Internet and social media platforms
to recruit followers and incite violence. Last week, ISIS released a new video,
"Makers of Epic Battles 7," depicting attacks on Kurdish and Syrian government
vehicles and brutal execution footage of 25 people. After its release, the
short clips promoting the video gained significant momentum on TikTok,
receiving thousands of views. Concurrently, the pro-ISIS group al-Azaim Media
released the latest issue of the group’s English-language propaganda web
magazine,Voice of Khorasan, while the pro-ISIS Qimam Electronic Foundation
(QEF) distributed a cyber security guide on RocketChat for improving data
security.
CEP researchers further identified and reported multiple Twitter accounts
glorifying the Christchurch terrorist, including one account that posted a
violent clip from the attack video, and other accounts that promoted the
attacker's manifesto, posted memes and drawings, and encouraged new acts of
violence. CEP additionally located two notorious books from white supremacist
William Luther Pierce on Mega.Nz and circulated in a neo-Nazi Telegram chat
alongside bomb-making manuals and plans for 3D-printed firearms.
Finally, following a street fight between members of the Proud Boys and the
group Rose City Nationalists, multiple Telegram channels belonging to extreme
right groups sought to recruit members of the Proud Boys gang. Other channels
affiliated with the group declared their previous cooperation with other
extremist groups.
New ISIS Video Released
On June 25, ISIS released a new video titled “Makers of Epic Battles 7” via
the group’s self-proclaimed Syria province. The video, which includes footage
showing attacks committed since at least 2021, shows multiple IED attacks and
attacks on Syrian government vehicles in several regions. The video also
includes graphic footage of the execution or murder of 25 people, including
individuals identified as Kurdish soldiers, alleged intelligence personnel, and
Syrian government soldiers and pro-Assad militiamen.
CEP located the video on Telegram, RocketChat, two different file transfer
sites on the dark web, another file transfer site, pro-ISIS propaganda
websites, and the Internet Archive. The Internet Archive removed the files
after CEP reported them.
The video was also advertised by at least four accounts on TikTok, which
showed logos for the video or included footage. The videos were uploaded
between June 25 and June 28 and had 6,754, 599, 51,400, and 8,534 views on June
29. The four videos were reported to TikTok on June 29. One video was removed,
and three remained online four days later.
ISIS video “Makers of Epic Battles 7” advertised on TikTok. Screenshot taken
June 29.
Voice of Khorasan Issue 26 Released
On June 25, the pro-ISIS al-Azaim Media released the 26th issue of the web
magazine Voice of Khorasan. The main article criticized Turkish President Recep
Tayyip Erdoğan for notfurther
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cracking down on Turkey’s LGBT population and cooperation with the majority
Shiite Azerbaijan. Other articles condemned Mohammed bin Salman, the Crown
Prince of Saudi Arabia, promoted ISIS recruitment, attacked Sufism, and
declared that government repayment of International Monetary Fund loans
implicated individuals in the system of usury. The final article condemned
those who did not follow through on claimed religious obligations and asked why
people were not working to end the religious persecution and imprisonment of
Uyghurs in China.
Image in article in Voice of Khorasan Issue 26 condemning repayment of
development loans as implicating individual citizens in a system of usury.
Pro-ISIS Tech Group Releases Data Security Guide
On June 27, the pro-ISIS tech group Qimam Electronic Foundation (QEF) released
a guide in Arabic and English for improving data security on PasteThis.To and
distributed via RocketChat. The guide explained potential cyber intrusion
methods and offered limited suggestions for improving web security. QEF has
recently released guides for learning programminglanguages
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, usingSession
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Messenger, determining passwordbreaches
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, usinganti-phishing
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features, and has warned about Androidmalware
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.
Qimam Electronic Foundation logo.
Extreme Right Content, Clip from Christchurch Terrorist Attack Video, and
Content Glorifying Mass Murder Located on Twitter
In a sample of content on Twitter located on June 28, CEP researchers found
eight accounts that posted content glorifying the perpetrator of the
Christchurch terrorist attack. One account posted an eight-second clip on June
19 taken from the live-streamed attack video, which showed extreme violence and
had over 50 views. Other accounts posted the cover of the attacker’s manifesto,
memes or drawings glorifying the attacker or advocating violence against
Muslims, or photos taken from the attack video. CEP reported all content to
relevant national authorities.
CEP researchers located ten additional Twitter accounts that made various
posts supporting white supremacist neo-fascist groups, including Patriot Front,
Vanguard Britannia, active clubs, and the Nationalist Social Club. Individuals
posted propaganda videos, photosets, and memes glorifying these groups. Some
propaganda included contact information for the groups advertised. CEP reported
the 10 accounts to Twitter on June 30.
Patriot Front propaganda video with over 5,000 views on Twitter posted by a
verified account. Screenshot taken on June 29.
White Supremacist Content and Explosives Manuals Located on Mega.Nz
On June 29, CEP researchers located multiple Mega.Nz files distributed via a
neo-Nazi Telegram chat, including two copies ofThe Turner Diaries
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Hunter, both written by the white supremacist William Luther Pierce
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uploader also posted bomb-making guides, manuals for the homemade construction
of suppressors for firearms, and plans for 3D-printed firearms. Mega.Nz removed
the files after CEP reported them.
Active Clubs Pitch Recruitment to Proud Boys Chapters
Multiple Telegram accounts affiliated with the white supremacist active club
movement pitched recruitment messages to members of the Proud Boys between June
25 and 29, following a June 24 Portland street fight between members of the
gang and members of the neo-Nazi group Rose City Nationalists who were
protesting the same LGBT pride event. The leader of the Rose City Nationalists
is allegedly a former member of a local Proud Boys chapter. An active
club-affiliated coalition from the Pacific Northwest released a video on
Telegram on June 28 stating that the fight was due to “personal beef” between
members of the two groups and joined multiple U.S. active club chapters urging
that members of the Proud Boys join other extreme right organizations.
A Telegram channel affiliated with the Philadelphia Proud Boys condemned the
Portland chapter of the group, stating that attacking “fashy bros” was wrong.
On June 25, members of an active club chat allegedly sought to connect local
Proud Boys with other groups in their area. A Telegram account affiliated with
a Texas Proud Boys chapter called for calm, stating that they had appeared at
events with local Patriot Front and White Lives Matter (WLM) chapters before
and that a member of the Proud Boys had led the local WLM group. CEPpreviously
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found a WLM account on Instagram that featured two alleged Proud Boys members
promoting an antisemitic propaganda film that glorified Nazi Germany.
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