The Extremism Roundup

Islamist Extremism

Imam Alhagie Jallow - Madinah Community Center via JNS screenshot

Wisconsin Imam Declares All Jews "Will Be Killed By Muslims"

• A recently translated sermon by Alhagie Jallow, imam at the Madinah Community Center in Madison, Wisc., preached that only jihad could bring victory and called for the killing of Jews, labeling them as "unjust, criminal, corrupt oppressors."

• Jallow, originally from Mbollet, Gambia, studied in Diourbel, Senegal, and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and has been working at the nonprofit center since 2009.

• The imam's sermon expressed a belief that Muslims will inevitably execute all Jews, describing it as a "divine promise" from Allah.  Read More

ISIS Supporter Sentenced for Lying to FBI About His Terror Connections

• Moad Mohamed Benkabbou, 23, of Kissimmee, Fla., has been sentenced to six years in federal prison for making false statements to the FBI regarding his involvement and support for ISIS.

• Benkabbou admitted to swearing allegiance to ISIS, planning to travel to Syria and Turkey to fight for the group, sending money, and disseminating ISIS propaganda, including videos depicting executions. He lied about these activities during FBI interviews.  Read More

Jordanian Arrested After Assauting Israel Supporter

• Shadi Abu Sammour, an anti-Israel demonstrator, was charged with robbery and assault after allegedly hitting a female pro-Israel counter-protestor in the face with a megaphone during an altercation at a Jacksonville, Fla., rally.

• The incident occurred during a protest in the city's Five Points neighborhood, where Sammour reportedly grabbed the counter-protestor's megaphone, struck her with it, and threw it into the St. Johns River before brandishing a firearm.

• Jacksonville Sheriff's Office emphasized the importance of peaceful expression of free speech but intervened when criminal actions occurred, leading to the arrest of Sammour, who had a history of posting anti-Israel content on social media and is originally from Jordan.  Read More

Iran Has More Than Enough Nuclear Material for “Several” Nuclear Warheads 

• Rafael Grossi, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), has said Iran is "very close to weapons grade" uranium as it continues rapid enrichment.

• The latest IAEA report disclosed that Iran has escalated its production of near weapons-grade uranium, reversing a slowdown initiated in mid-2023.

• Already in January 2023, Grossi warned that Iran had enough highly enriched uranium to build "several" nuclear weapons if it so chose.  Read More

Militant-Right & Militant-Left Extremism

Campaign ad for Republican candidate (North Carolina) Joseph Gibson - via WRAL News screenshot

Candidate Connected to Neo-Nazis Allowed to Stay on the Ballot

• The State Board of Elections unanimously voted to keep Republican candidate Joseph Gibson III on the ballot for a North Carolina House district despite local GOP leaders attempting to disqualify him.

• Gibson, an ex-felon, faces allegations of involvement in posting white supremacist content and simulcasting his podcast on the neo-Nazi National Socialist Movement Network.

• Rockingham Republicans sought to disqualify Gibson based on his felony convictions, but the State Board of Elections ruled in his favor, emphasizing that he met the qualifications to run. Gibson claimed Republicans turned against him due to his opposition to local casinos.  Read More

Patriot Front Marches Though NYC

• The White Supremacist group Patriot Front held a protest in New York City, with an estimated 90-150 masked individuals advancing toward the 9/11 World Trade Center in downtown Manhattan.
• Video footage showed the group passing through subways, Oculus Mall, and various locations, all wearing the same uniform and carrying the American National Flag and a banner with the slogan “America is not for sale.”
• The purpose of the protest was not entirely clear. Police officers escorted them, maintaining a watch to ensure a safe distance from counter-protesters or other individuals.  Read More

Seattle Light Rail Station Closes Due to Anti-Israel Demonstration

• Sound Transit closed the University District Link light rail station in Seattle for four hours on Saturday night, citing "safety reasons" related to a planned pro-Palestine demonstration.
• The closure, announced on social media, disrupted service with trains bypassing the station. Access into and out of the station was restricted due to the protest, and Link Shuttle buses replaced the 1 Line between Roosevelt Station and the University of Washington Station.
• The demonstration, organized by the Palestinian Youth Movement, aimed to denounce the connections between publicly funded Sound Transit and multinational conglomerate Siemens, accusing Siemens of supporting Israeli occupation and colonization in Palestine.  Read More

  Hate Crime

Club Q shooter, Anderson Lee Aldrich, in court - via CBS News Colorado screenshot

Colorado Shooter Charged With Federal Hate Crimes

• Anderson Lee Aldrich, a Colorado resident, has been charged with hate crimes and firearms charges in connection to the mass shooting at Club Q, an LGBT establishment in Colorado Springs, in Nov. 2022.

• The charges state that Aldrich, armed with a loaded assault weapon, entered Club Q, where he murdered five people, injured 19, and attempted to murder 28 others in a willful, deliberate, and premeditated attack. The motive is alleged to be based on the actual or perceived sexual orientation and gender identity of individuals.

• Aldrich has filed a notice of disposition and requested a change of plea hearing, indicating an anticipated guilty plea to all charges.  Read More

Two Charged With Hate Crime After Attacking Oregon Jewish Center

• Two 18-year-old men, Zachary Demarest and Jacob Wilhelm, are facing bias crime charges after vandalizing the Chabad Jewish Center in Ashland, Ore., on Dec. 14, 2023.

• Video evidence shows one of the suspects throwing eggs at the building while yelling "Heil Hitler." Demarest, identified as the person responsible for the act, turned himself in to Ashland police and was charged with second-degree bias crime and third-degree criminal mischief.

• Wilhelm, suspected of encouraging Demarest's actions, was also charged with the same crimes. Both suspects, who were students at Southern Oregon University at the time, are no longer enrolled at the university.  Read More

Former Obama Official Reaches Plea Deal in NYC Hate Crime Case

• Stuart Seldowitz, a former National Security Council official, reached a plea deal on hate crime charges related to racist and Islamophobic rants against a New York food cart vendor in November 2023.

• Videos showed him verbally attacking the vendor, insulting Islam, and accusing him of supporting Hamas. Seldowitz served in the National Security Council during the Obama administration.

• The plea deal requires Seldowitz to attend a 26-week anti-bias training program and avoid arrests or interactions with the victims. Charges will be dismissed upon completion of these conditions.  Read More

  School Threats

Forest High School, Marion County, Fla. - Joe Byrnes via WMFE News screenshot

Florida High School Student Arrested for Threat

• An 18-year-old student at Forest High School in Marion County, Fla., was arrested after posting a threatening Snapchat message, indicating plans to blow up multiple schools and target specific teachers.

• Law enforcement arrested the student at the school after he attended classes on the same day the threat was made.  

• The school district increased security measures, and deputies are investigating possible connections between this threat and a previous one naming 10 schools as targets.  Read More

Montana Man Pleads Guilty to Possessing Homemade Bombs in School Threat Case

• Logan Sea Pallister, a 25-year-old man from Montana, pleaded guilty to federal charges of illegally possessing homemade bombs and a silencer.

• Pallister was arrested in May 2022 after a witness reported that he had multiple bombs, access to firearms, and had made threats to commit a Columbine-style attack at Helena High School.  

• Pallister faces up to 10 years in prison and will be sentenced in May.  Read More

New York Teen Arrested for Bomb Scare

• A 14-year-old boy was arrested on two felony counts related to a bomb scare that forced the evacuation of Suffern High School in Suffern, N.Y.
• The youth faces charges of making a terrorist threat and first-degree falsely reporting an incident. The arrest follows a four-month investigation into a bomb threat that occurred on September 21, 2023.
• The arrested individual's name will not be disclosed due to age, and the case will be handled in Rockland County Family Court, which deals with legal matters involving minors. The threat led to the evacuation of students, prompting a coordinated response with law enforcement agencies.  Read More

Hostile Foreign Influence Operations

 U.S. Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY), Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) (L) and Sen. Pete Ricketts (R-NE) (R), hold a press conference at the U.S. Capitol on October 31, 2023, about the need to secure the southern border to stop the possibility of terrorists using it as a U.S. entry point - Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

Qatar Spy Operation Targeted GOP Lawmakers

• Qatar allegedly hired a former CIA agent's company, Global Risk Advisors, to discredit Sen. Ted Cruz and other lawmakers opposing Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood.

• Documents reveal a Qatar-funded espionage campaign titled "Project ENDGAME" targeted Cruz, who sought to designate the Muslim Brotherhood as a Foreign Terrorist Organization.

• The plan aimed to undermine anti-Hamas and anti-Muslim Brotherhood legislation, linking attacks on these groups to attacks on Qatar, and identified Cruz, Sen. Tom Cotton, and Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart as adversaries.  Read More

Virginia Man Sentenced for Violating Iran Sanctions

• Jalal Hajavi, from Virginia, has been sentenced to 24 months in prison for unlawfully exporting heavy equipment from the U.S. to Iran through the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
• Convicted of violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and the Iranian Transactions and Sanctions Regulations, Hajavi engaged in a scheme to ship U.S. heavy machinery to Iran without obtaining required licenses.
• The scheme involved concealing activities, falsifying export records, and shipping items through the UAE to Iran, evading U.S. sanctions. Despite warnings, Hajavi continued his illegal conduct, leading to his prosecution and sentencing.  Read More

Businessman Arrested for Scheme to Export Semiconductors to Russia

• Ilya Kahn, 66, a resident of Brooklyn, N.Y., was arrested in Los Angeles for his alleged involvement in a scheme to unlawfully export sensitive technology from the U.S. to a Russian business sanctioned by the U.S. government post-Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
• Charged with conspiracy to violate the Export Control Reform Act (ECRA), Kahn is accused of repeatedly exporting sensitive technology to Russia, including microcontrollers, network interface controllers, and a radio-frequency transmitter without the required licenses.
• Kahn, the owner of Senesys Incorporated and Sensor Design Association, faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.  Read More

Research and Trends in Extremism

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman in the U.S. Capitol during the House Freedom Caucus, January 11 - Kent Nishimura/Getty Images

OpenAI Outlines Plan to Deter Election Misinformation

• OpenAI has outlined safeguards to prevent the misuse of its generative AI tools for spreading election misinformation.

• The measures include banning the use of its technology to create chatbots impersonating real candidates, misrepresenting voting processes, or discouraging voting.

• OpenAI plans to digitally watermark AI images created using its DALL-E image generator and is partnering with the National Association of Secretaries of State to direct users to accurate voting information.  Read More

Feds Suggested Search Terms for Banks

• Federal investigators suggested banks use a range of terms beyond "Trump" and "MAGA" to search private financial transactions after January 6, 2021, including "Biden," "Kamala," "Antifa," and more.
• The Treasury Department's FinCEN distributed materials to financial institutions outlining "typologies" and providing suggested search terms for identifying transactions on behalf of federal law enforcement.
• Additional search terms generated by an unnamed bank included terms such as "White Power" and "Capitol," with the distribution of these terms beginning in the final weeks of the Trump administration after January 6, 2021.  Read More

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QUOTABLE 

“I am exceedingly anxious that this Union, the Constitution, and the liberties of the people shall be perpetuated in accordance with the original idea for which that struggle was made, and I shall be most happy indeed if I shall be an humble instrument in the hands of the Almighty, and of this, his almost chosen people, for perpetuating the object of that great struggle.”

- Abraham Lincoln

NOTE TO OUR READERS: We have pulled out the salient points of the articles in this newsletter to keep you informed and focused on the most relevant, important and timely news in national security and extremism. While our national security experts stand behind the summary bullets and deem them trustworthy, Clarion Project does not endorse all the views expressed in the articles linked.