“A Manhattan jury on Thursday found an Upper East Side woman guilty of funding
terrorism after she used cryptocurrency to send financial support to several
groups operating in Syria. The woman, Victoria Jacobs, 44, was accused by the
Manhattan district attorney’s office last year of having provided more than
$5,000 to Malhama Tactical, a military contractor that has been called “the
Blackwater of jihad.” The group fought alongside Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, a
jihadist group designated a terrorist organization by the State Department. The
conviction comes amid a debate between champions of cryptocurrency, who see the
technology as an alternative to regulated finance, and skeptics who have
pointed out its frequent use in fraud and other crimes. Federal judges are
considering lawsuits by the nation’s top securities regulator against some of
the cryptocurrency industry’s largest firms, which could curtail the
technology’s use in this country.”











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Eye on Extremism



February 2, 2024



New York Times: Manhattan Woman Convicted Of Using Crypto To Fund Terror
Groups In Syria
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“A Manhattan jury on Thursday found an Upper East Side woman guilty of funding
terrorism after she used cryptocurrency to send financial support to several
groups operating in Syria. The woman, Victoria Jacobs, 44, was accused by the
Manhattan district attorney’s office last year of having provided more than
$5,000 to Malhama Tactical, a military contractor that has been called “the
Blackwater of jihad.” The group fought alongside Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, a
jihadist group designated a terrorist organization by the State Department. The
conviction comes amid a debate between champions of cryptocurrency, who see the
technology as an alternative to regulated finance, and skeptics who have
pointed out its frequent use in fraud and other crimes. Federal judges are
considering lawsuits by the nation’s top securities regulator against some of
the cryptocurrency industry’s largest firms, which could curtail the
technology’s use in this country.”



Associated Press: US Hints Large Response To Iran-Backed Militias Is Imminent
As Houthi Rebels Target Another Ship
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“Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Thursday it’s time to further disable
Iran-backed militias that have struck at U.S. forces and ships in the Middle
East and the U.S. is preparing to take significant action in response to the
deaths of three U.S. service members in Jordan. For days the U.S. has hinted
strikes are imminent. While the threat of retaliation for Sunday’s deaths has
driven some militant groups to say they were stopping hostilities, as late as
Thursday Yemen’s Houthi rebels were still attacking vessels and fired a
ballistic missile at a Liberian-flagged container ship in the Red Sea. “At this
point, it’s time to take away even more capability than we’ve taken in the
past,” Austin said Thursday in his first press conference since he was
hospitalized on Jan. 1 due to complications from prostate cancer treatment.”




Recent CEP Press Releases

* Extremist Content Online: Audiobook Version of Jacksonville Dollar General
Shooter’s Manifesto Released on Telegram
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* Extremist Content Online: White Supremacist Telegram Channels Spread
Manifesto of Jacksonville Gunman
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* CEP APPLAUDS UNITED KINGDOM FOR PROSCRIBING HIZB UT-TAHRIR
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* CEP Webinar: The Stakes Of Houthi Aggression Against International Shipping
Since Oct. 7
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*
Extremist Content Online: Extreme-Right And Neo-Nazi Content Located On
TikTok, Instagram, And Twitter/X
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United States



Voice Of America: US Exploring Consular Return To Afghanistan Without
Recognizing Taliban Rule
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“The United States is cautiously exploring the possibility of reopening a
consulate in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan, according to a newly released
strategy document from the State Department. The move signals a potential shift
in U.S. policy toward limited engagement with the isolated Islamist regime,
while aiming to achieve multiple security, political and economic objectives.
“With the Taliban, we advocate for consular access, transparency and
accountability for Americans; we also support the work of the Special
Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs to obtain the release of Americans
unjustly detained,” reads the recently approved Integrated Country Strategy
Afghanistan, which was approved in October 2023. With the fall of the Afghan
government in August 2021, the U.S. shut down its embassy in Kabul, marking a
symbolic end to two decades of military and political engagement with
Afghanistan.”



The Independent: Biden Authorizes Sanctions On Israeli Settlers For ‘Extremist
Violence’ In West Bank
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“President Joe Biden on Thursday signed an executive order granting the
Treasury Department the power to issue sanctions against Israelis complicit in
the illegal settlement movement, which has been blamed for provoking tensions
between Palestinians and the Israeli government. In a message to Congress
announcing the new sanctions, Mr Biden said he’d declared a national emergency
“to deal with the threat posed by the situation in the West Bank, including in
particular high levels of extremist settler violence, forced displacement of
people and villages, and property destruction”. “Such actions constitute a
serious threat to the peace, security, and stability of the West Bank and Gaza,
Israel, and the broader Middle East region and undermine the foreign policy and
national security objectives of the United States,” he added.”



Iraq



CBS News: Plans For U.S. Strikes On Iranian Personnel And Facilities In Iraq,
Syria Approved After Jordan Drone Attack
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“U.S. officials have confirmed to CBS News that plans have been approved for a
series of strikes over a number of days against targets — including Iranian
personnel and facilities — inside Iraq and Syria. The strikes will come in
response to drone and rocket attacks targeting U.S. forces in the region,
including the drone attack on Sunday that killed three U.S. service members at
the Tower 22 base inside Jordan, near the Syrian border. Speaking at the
Pentagon Thursday, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told reporters that the U.S.
won't tolerate attacks on American troops.”



Afghanistan



CBS: The Taliban Vowed To Cut Ties With Al Qaeda, But The Terror Group Appears
To Be Growing In Afghanistan
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“Al Qaeda has established eight new training camps and maintains several
safehouses in Afghanistan, according to a report provided to the United Nations
Security Council this week. The report, compiled by the council's committee
created to monitor al Qaeda, indicates that the Taliban has not honored its
pledge to the U.S. – outlined in the Doha agreement – to sever ties with the
terror group, and that the two organizations remain close. The Taliban has
provided increased protection and support for al Qaeda members since regaining
control over Afghanistan in 2021, when U.S. forces pulled out, the report says.
According to the report presented to the Security Council, the group behind the
Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks on the U.S. has established "up to eight new
training camps in Afghanistan, including four in Ghazni, Laghman, Parwan and
Uruzgan Provinces, with a new base to stockpile weaponry in the Panjshir
Valley."



Associated Press: UN Experts: Terrorist Threat Is High In Africa Conflict
Zones And Afghanistan, And Rose In Europe
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“The terrorist threat from al-Qaida, the Islamic State group and their
affiliates remains high in conflict zones in Africa and in Afghanistan – and
threat levels have risen in some regions including Europe, U.N. experts said in
a new report. The panel of experts said in the 23-page report that the
relationship between Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers and al-Qaida remains close,
and unnamed member states report that “the high concentration of terrorist
groups” in the country are undermining the security situation in the region.
The greatest threat within Afghanistan still comes from the Islamic State “with
its ability to project into the region and beyond,” the experts said in the
report to the U.N. Security Council covering the period until Dec. 16, 2023
which was circulated Wednesday. Regionally, they pointed to a succession of
attacks in neighboring Iran and Pakistan and threats in Central Asian nations.”



Europe



AFP: Sweden Probing Foiled Israel Embassy Attack As 'Terrorist Crime':
Security Service
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"Sweden's intelligence service said Friday that the investigation into a
foiled attack on the Israeli embassy in Stockholm this week was being probed as
a potential "terrorist crime." Police were called to the embassy on Wednesday
after a "dangerous object" was discovered on its grounds, which the national
bomb squad destroyed after determining it was "live". Police declined to
comment on what the object was but media have reported it was a hand grenade.
"The preliminary investigation launched by the Swedish Police Authority on
January 31, following the discovery of a dangerous object at the Israeli
Embassy in Stockholm, has been taken over by the Swedish Security Service," the
service said in a statement."



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