Email from Counter Extremism Project (CEP) World mayors gather in Paris to combat antisemitism Eye on Extremism November 21, 2025   Top Stories Reuters: Islamic State-linked rebels kill 89 civilians in east Congo attacks, UN force says Islamic State-linked rebels have killed 89 civilians in multiple attacks in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo's Lubero territory, the U.N. peacekeeping mission in the Central African country, known as MONUSCO, said on Friday. The attacks were carried out by fighters from the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) in several localities of North Kivu province between November 13 and November 19, and the 89 killed included at least 20 women and an undetermined number of children, MONUSCO said in a statement. Jewish News Syndicate: World mayors gather in Paris to combat antisemitism Dozens of city leaders from around the world gathered Wednesday for the three-day Paris Mayors Summit Against Antisemitism, where Mayor Anne Hidalgo said that supporting the Jewish community was part of “the soul” of the French metropolis.   REGISTER FOR UPCOMING WEBINAR: Rethinking the Fight Against Antisemitism After October 7. This is the third webinar of a three-part series on how antisemitism is strategically exploited by extremist groups, a project supported by the Federal Foreign Office of Germany. This session will explore the transnational dimensions to countering the threat, including policy and prevention. RSVP here.   CEP Mentions Welt: Interior Ministry replaces its Islamism advisors A new permanent advisory board on the prevention of Islamism is being established at the Federal Ministry of the Interior (BMI). This new group of experts replaces a task force founded only last year by former Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD). The board includes Dr. Hans-Jakob Schindler, Counter Extremism Project. NZZ: Ministry of the Interior appoints 15 new advisors to combat Islamism CEP Senior Director Dr. Hans-Jakob Schindler appointed to new German government Task Force. “The Federal Ministry of the Interior (BMI) is replacing its advisors in the fight against Islamism. The previous Task Force on Islamism Prevention, which began its work under the previous government in October 2024, will be further developed in terms of content and reorganized in terms of personnel, the ministry announced on Friday.” Analysis Times of Israel: ‘We need to make them scared’: NYC synagogue protest crosses new red lines At a protest on Wednesday night at the entrance to a New York City synagogue, a masked demonstrator stood above the crowd and urged attendees to intimidate Jews. “It is our duty to make them think twice before holding these events,” he said, referring to a gathering held inside the synagogue by Nefesh B’nefesh, a group that helps Jews immigrate to Israel. United States NBC News: Man accused of setting woman on fire on Chicago train faces federal terrorism charge The man accused of setting a woman on fire on a Chicago transit train this week has been charged with federal terrorism, according to a criminal complaint. Lawrence Reed, 50, was charged with one count of committing a terrorist attack or other violence against a mass transportation system Wednesday in the Northern District of Illinois. New York Post: Somali terror group al-Shabab ‘taking a cut’ of millions in stolen Minnesota taxpayer money from welfare fraud scheme: report Millions of dollars in taxpayer money stolen as part of a series of massive Minnesota welfare fraud schemes may have been funneled to Somalia-based terror group al-Shabab, according to a report. The radical Islamic terror group, which is a longstanding ally of al Qaeda and considered a threat to US interests, has likely been the beneficiary of money stolen in a spate of scams and sent to Somalia by the criminals defrauding the North Star State, City Journal reported Wednesday, citing federal counterterrorism sources. Associated Press: Muslim civil rights group sues Texas for labeling it a terrorist organization A Muslim civil rights group that Texas’ governor labeled a “foreign terrorist organization” filed a lawsuit challenging the move Thursday, saying it violates the U.S. Constitution and state law. The Dallas-Fort Worth and Austin chapters of the Council on American-Islamic Relations asked a federal judge to strike down the proclamation Gov. Greg Abbott issued Tuesday, which also labeled the group “a transnational criminal organization.” Associated Press: Coast Guard reverses course on policy to call swastikas and nooses ‘potentially divisive’ The U.S. Coast Guard has released a new, firmer policy addressing the display of hate symbols like swastikas and nooses just hours after it was publicly revealed that it made plans to describe them as “potentially divisive” — a term that prompted outcry from lawmakers and advocates. “Divisive or hate symbols and flags are prohibited,” the latest Coast Guard policy, released late Thursday, declared before adding that this category included “a noose, a swastika, and any symbols or flags co-opted or adopted by hate-based groups.” New York Times: Qaeda Convict Returns to Guantánamo Court 17 Years After Trial Guantánamo’s only prisoner serving a life sentence returned to the war court on Thursday, 17 years after he was convicted of producing recruiting videos for Al Qaeda, and put on a show of defiance as he did at his 2008 war crimes trial. The prisoner, Ali Hamza al-Bahlul, 56, firmly but politely refused to sit in the witness stand, refused to swear an oath to tell the truth and refused help from a defense lawyer. The Guardian: White nationalist Nick Fuentes is exposing a civil war among US Republicans: ‘We look like clowns’ Five days a week, thousands of fans gather online to watch Nick Fuentes hold court about the dangers of non-white immigration, feminism and “organized Jewry”. Usually dressed in a dark suit and tie, he lectures to his far-right followers, known as “Groypers”, about what he argues is the insufficient radicalism of Donald Trump’s Republican party and what he describes as the perfidies of the state of Israel and its American supporters. Jewish Insider: Dem lawmakers launch PAC to fight antisemitism within the party A group of Democratic lawmakers is launching a political action committee to support candidates who have prioritized tackling antisemitism, alongside standing up against other forms of hate. Jewish Insider: Schumer announces legislation condemning Nick Fuentes Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) announced on Thursday that he will introduce a resolution condemning neo-Nazi influencer Nick Fuentes and his white supremacist views after President Donald Trump declined to condemn Fuentes or Tucker Carlson’s platforming of him. Times of Israel: Trump hosts captives he helped free from Gaza: ‘You’re not hostages anymore, you’re heroes’ US President Donald Trump hosted a delegation at the White House on Thursday of nearly all the hostages freed through as part of the Gaza ceasefire deal he brokered last month. “You’re not a hostage anymore… today you’re heroes,” Trump told the former hostages and their families in a brief portion of his prepared remarks that were filmed and released by the White House. Columbia Spectator: Twin students sue Columbia over claim that University failed to protect them from antisemitism Twin brothers Jonathan Lederer, CC ’26, and David Lederer, SEAS ’26, allege in a lawsuit filed against Columbia last month that since Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel, the University has “failed to take prompt and effective steps” to protect Jewish students from harassment, intimidation, and assault. Jewish Telegraphic Agency: ‘Israel’s Friendsgiving’ protest at DC train station includes ‘Gaza’s spilled blood’ on the menu An anti-Israel guerrilla art demonstration at the main train station in Washington, D.C., on Thursday that portrayed U.S. and Israeli leaders drinking the blood of Gazans is drawing criticism for channeling the blood libel levied against Jews throughout history. “Seldom have we seen such a sickening display of full-throated antisemitism,” the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington said in a statement late Thursday. Jewish Telegraphic Agency: After protest outside Manhattan synagogue, Mamdani says Israel immigration event misused ‘sacred space’ Zohran Mamdani, New York City’s mayor-elect, has responded to a protest targeting an event promoting migration to Israel at an Upper East Side synagogue, suggesting that the event was an inappropriate use of a “sacred space.” The protest on Wednesday night, organized by a group called Palestinian Assembly for Liberation, has drawn allegations of antisemitism from Jewish leaders in the city. During it, participants shouted phrases including “globalize the intifada” and “death to the IDF” as well as insults toward pro-Israel counter-protesters like “f—king Jewish pricks,” according to reports from the scene. Police separated the protesters and counter-protesters but did not halt the demonstration. Canada Jerusalem Post: Terrorist who attempted stabbing near Gaza left Canadian army only 12 days prior Canadian Zachareah Quraishi had only been released from the Canadian Army Reserves 12 days before he flew to Israel and attempted a stabbing attack at a Gaza periphery town. The terrorist's military past, which was first reported by The National Post, was confirmed to The Jerusalem Post by the Department of National Defence on Thursday. Brazil Le Monde: In Brazil, the far right passes a highly repressive law targeting armed factions Brazilian society demanded a response after a deadly police operation in Rio de Janeiro on October 28 that targeted Comando Vermelho, one of the country's most active criminal organizations, which left more than 120 people dead. Less than a month later, it was the far right that provided it. In a major setback for President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, the lower house of Congress passed a so-called "anti-faction" law on Tuesday, November 18, ostensibly aimed at combating armed groups. The bill, which toughens sentences and increases the power of local police, has been criticized by organized crime experts. Cyprus Reuters: Cyprus jails Azeri man for conspiracy, drops terrorism-related charge A court in Cyprus on Friday sentenced an Azeri man to 6-1/2 years in jail on charges of conspiracy, his lawyer said, after prosecutors earlier dropped charges he planned terrorist attacks against Israelis living on the island. Cyprus's Criminal Court imposed the sentence on Orkan Asadov, an Azeri, who has been in custody since late 2021. At the time of his arrest Israel accused Iran of recruiting Asadov as a "hit man" to target Israeli businesspeople on the island. Czech Republic Associated Press: Jewish community in the Czech Republic reports record number of antisemitic incidents in 2024 Antisemitic incidents in the Czech Republic reached record levels last year amid the conflict in Gaza, the country’s Jewish community said on Friday. In its annual report, the Federation of the Jewish Communities said it registered 4,694 antisemitic incidents in 2024, almost 8.5% up from 4,328 in the previous year. In 2023, the reports jumped by 90% following the deadly Hamas attacks on Israel on Oct. 7, an assault that triggered the war in Gaza. France France 24: French minister says drug crime threat 'equivalent to terrorism' after Marseille murder French ministers vowed Thursday to use methods "similar" to counter-terrorism to stamp out drug crime on a visit to Marseille, where the brother of a prominent anti-drug activist was shot dead last week. Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin pledged more resources for the port city, speaking of a threat "at least equivalent to terrorism". Times of Israel: French antisemitism being stoked by far-left, minister tells mayors conference Antisemitism is being weaponized in France by members of the far-left for political purposes, a French minister tells a delegation of mayors from across Europe. “We are facing political forces, in France, from the far left, that have instrumentalized the violence being caused, the suffering of the Israeli people, to mislead the French population, to give a kind of foreign legitimacy to antisemitism, and to bring this conflict into our society for political gain,” French Minister Delegate for Europe Benjamin Haddad told the European Summit of Mayors Against Antisemitism in Paris yesterday. Germany Kurdistan24: Syrian Teen Goes on Trial in Berlin over Knife Attack at Holocaust Memorial A 19-year-old Syrian man went on trial in Berlin on Thursday for carrying out a knife attack on a Spanish tourist at the capital’s Holocaust memorial just days before Germany’s general election in February. The suspect, identified by the court as Wassim Al M., is accused of supporting ISIS and intentionally targeting what he believed to be a Jewish victim. According to prosecutors, he approached the 30-year-old Spanish tourist from behind among the concrete slabs of the memorial and slashed his throat with a knife, leaving a 14-centimetre wound. Deutsche Welle: Should the sale of Nazi-era relics be banned? Public outcry has forced a German auction house to cancel the sale of Nazi memorabilia, including a Yellow Star with "signs of wear." How is the sale of Nazi-era artifacts regulated and who's buying them? Italy Politico: Venetian heavyweight Luca Zaia spells trouble for Salvini and the League Luca Zaia, a towering force in northern Italian politics, is plotting his next move and that’s turning into a headache for his party, the far-right League, led by firebrand Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini. Sweden AFP: Sweden Rejects Two Extradition Requests From Turkey Sweden said Thursday it had rejected a Turkish extradition request for two men wanted for their alleged involvement in the so-called Gulen movement. Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has blamed the Gulen movement for masterminding a bloody coup bid by a renegade army faction in July 2016. United Kingdom Reuters: Two British teens plead not guilty to London transport cyberattack charges Two teenagers pleaded not guilty on Friday to hacking charges over a 2024 cyberattack on London's public transport body, with one of them also denying charges related to two health systems in the United States. Transport for London (TfL), which operates the British capital's tube and bus networks with millions of journeys each day, was targeted in August 2024. TfL said at the time that some personal customer data was accessed. Sky News: Sultana accused by Corbyn allies of encouraging 'ultra leftists' to disrupt Your Party conference Allies of Jeremy Corbyn fear Zarah Sultana is encouraging members of far-left splinter groups to disrupt Your Party's inaugural conference. In recent weeks, Ms Sultana has appeared alongside representatives of groups who are not permitted to be members of Your Party or attend its conference under party rules - fuelling suspicion she is targeting them for support. Afghanistan Afghanistan International: Taliban Restrictions Cast Shadow Over World Television Day in Afghanistan As the world marks World Television Day on, the Taliban’s leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada, continues efforts to curb visual media in Afghanistan. Television broadcasting in Afghanistan began in 1978 with the establishment of National Radio and Television under the Soviet-backed government, an institution now fully controlled by the Taliban. Afghanistan International: Ex-Senator Calls Taliban ‘Medieval Government,’ Says Afghans Want Change Former Pakistani senator Mushahid Hussain has said that an overwhelming majority of Afghans are dissatisfied with Taliban rule, describing the group’s governance as “medieval.” In an interview with Geo News, he claimed that “95 percent” of Afghans are tired of the Taliban and reject their system of government. Afghanistan International: Taliban, Indian Envoys In Kyrgyzstan Discuss Expanding Cooperation Amid increasingly close engagement between New Delhi and Taliban, Abdul Shakoor Haqqani, the Taliban’s ambassador to Kyrgyzstan, has met with India’s ambassador in Bishkek, Birender Singh Yadav. According to a statement from the Taliban embassy in Kyrgyzstan on Friday, the two diplomats discussed strengthening relations, enhancing economic and trade cooperation and expanding diplomatic engagement. Regional connectivity and humanitarian assistance were also included in the talks. Gaza Strip/West Bank Wall Street Journal: U.S. Pushes a Hamas-Free ‘Green Zone’ in Gaza The U.S. is pushing ahead with plans to build communities for Palestinians on the Israeli side of the line dividing Gaza, bringing in teams of engineers and starting to clear sites in hopes of pulling civilians away from areas controlled by Hamas. The effort is a tacit acknowledgment that disarming the militant group and removing it from authority as called for under President Trump’s 20-point peace plan for the enclave isn’t likely to happen soon. Associated Press: Brussels hosts talks on Gaza reconstruction, security and governance More than 60 delegations met Thursday in Brussels to discuss reconstruction, governance and security in the Gaza Strip, and a proposed reform of the Palestinian Authority. Co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia, the meeting of the Palestine Donor Group, centered on the Palestinian Authority reforms outlined in a U.S. peace plan that won approval at the U.N. Security Council on Monday. Times of Israel: IDF reveals major Hamas tunnel where it says Hadar Goldin’s remains were held for years The Israel Defense Forces on Thursday revealed footage of a major Hamas tunnel where it said the remains of Lt. Hadar Goldin were held for much of the past 11 years until being returned earlier this month as part of the Gaza ceasefire. Iran Associated Press: Iran rejects UN atomic agency’s resolution and threatens more reprisal actions Iran’s foreign ministry called a resolution by the U.N. atomic watchdog’s board of governors “anti-Iranian” and threatened unspecified retaliatory actions, state media reported on Friday. The International Atomic Energy Agency on Thursday demanded that Iran fully cooperate with the agency and provide “precise information” about its stockpile of near weapons-grade uranium, as well as grant its inspectors access to Iranian nuclear sites. Israel Associated Press: Netanyahu convenes cabinet on settler violence in the West Bank that continues unabated \ Israel’s prime minister met with top security officials to discuss a rising tide of Israeli settler violence in the West Bank, an Israeli official said Friday, as fresh allegations surfaced of Israeli settlers hurling rocks at passing Palestinian vehicles in the West Bank village of Huwara. Times of Israel: IDF says it killed 6 Hamas operatives, captured 5 more after 15 emerged from Rafah tunnels Some 15 Hamas operatives emerged from tunnels in two separate locations in eastern Rafah — an area in southern Gaza held by the IDF — earlier today, the military says, following a preliminary investigation into the incident. According to the IDF, the Israeli Air Force, with information provided by ground troops, struck and killed six of the operatives. Times of Israel: Anonymous website offers $100,000 to kill top Israeli research academics An anonymous anti-Israel website was discovered on Friday to be offering payments of up to $100,000 for the execution of senior Israeli academics whom it accused of being complicit in Israel’s war in Gaza. The English-language site, The Punishment For Justice Movement, appeared to have been taken down by Friday afternoon, hours after garnering significant media attention. Times of Israel: Security agencies said to push new plan to counter surging settler violence Israel’s security establishment has drafted a series of new recommendations aimed at curbing Jewish nationalist crime and settler violence in the West Bank, following a sharp rise in serious incidents over the past year, Israeli television reported Thursday. According to Channel 12 news, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened a special meeting on Thursday with senior security officials to discuss the latest violence. Naharnet: Netanyahu says 'Hezbollah's threat' has become 'totally different' Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has noted that "the threat posed by Hezbollah today is completely different from what it was before October 7," stressing that "everything has changed." Times of Israel: Shin Bet said to back death penalty for terrorists, in departure from previous stance In a major shift, Shin Bet Chief David Zini has informed the government that the security agency supports a controversial bill to enact the death penalty for terrorists, according to Hebrew media reports on Friday. Zini was said to have endorsed the legislation on the agency’s behalf at a security cabinet meeting on Thursday night. Lebanon Naharnet: Lebanese army feeling US, Israeli heat over Hezbollah disarmament Israeli and U.S. pressure on Lebanon's army to speedily disarm Hezbollah is intensifying, with the army chief cancelling a visit to Washington after officials snubbed him, a military official told AFP. Lebanon's army has been beefing up its presence in south Lebanon near the Israeli border since a U.S.-brokered ceasefire last November sought to end more than a year of hostilities between Israel and the Iran-backed militant group. Turkey Associated Press: Turkish committee to visit PKK leader Ocalan in prison as part of peace initiative A Turkish parliamentary committee set up to oversee a new peace initiative with Kurdish militants on Friday voted in favor of a controversial step to meet with the militant group’s leader, Abdullah Ocalan, in prison, state media reported. Nigeria Reuters: Gunmen kidnap Catholic school students in Nigeria's latest attack Gunmen in Nigeria kidnapped students from a Catholic school in the early hours of Friday, in the latest attack after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened military action over the treatment of Christians in the West African country. Police and local government in Niger state, where the attack happened, confirmed that students had been abducted from St. Mary's School, but they did not say how many. Reuters: Nigerian church official: 38 worshippers kidnapped on Tuesday attack, ransom demand made Gunmen kidnapped 38 worshippers from a church in Nigeria's Kwara State on Tuesday and are demanding a ransom of 100 million naira (roughly $69,000) per worshipper, a church official told Reuters on Friday. Associated Press: Nigeria separatists say they are committed to peaceful self-determination after leaders sentenced The Indigenous People of Biafra, a separatist group in southeastern Nigeria, said Friday it remains committed to peaceful self-determination after a court sentenced its leader to life in prison for terrorism. Nnamdi Kanu, founder of IPOB, was convicted and sentenced on Thursday. Sudan Associated Press: The EU sanctions a Sudanese paramilitary leader after atrocities by his forces in Darfur The European Union imposed sanctions on a top leader of Sudan’s paramilitary group over “grave and ongoing atrocities” by his forces in the more than two-year war with the Sudanese army, including in the western Darfur region where they captured the army’s last stronghold last month. Singapore Times of Israel: Singapore sanctions four Israelis over ‘extreme violence’ against Palestinians Singapore has imposed financial sanctions on four Israelis and barred them from entering the city-state, its foreign affairs ministry announced on Friday, accusing them of “egregious acts of extreme violence” against Palestinians in the West Bank. The ministry said actions committed in the West Bank by Meir Mordechai Ettinger, Elisha Yered, Ben-Zion (Benzi) Gopstein, and Baruch Marzel were unlawful and had jeopardized the prospects for a two-state solution in Palestine. Australia The Guardian: Two Australian police officers were killed in an ambush. It was deemed terrorism – but an inquest says otherwise Three years ago on a remote Australian property, a trio of paranoid, deluded conspiracy theorists lay in wait. The three members of the Train family spent a year preparing ambush positions for a confrontation with Queensland police at their home in Wieambilla, 270km west of Brisbane, believing the battle marked the end of the world. They believed they needed “to defend themselves and their property from what they regarded was an evil advance on them”, a coronial inquest has now found. Technology Social Media Today: TikTok Announces New Partnerships To Tackle Extremist Content Published Nov. 20, 2025 TikTok has announced some new measures in its efforts to combat hate speech and violent extremism in its app, with the platform establishing a new partnership with Violence Prevention Network, which is an organization dedicated to stopping violent extremism, while it’s also joined the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism (GIFCT), in order to implement enhanced approaches to removing extremist content. TVP World: Auschwitz Museum calls out Elon Musk’s AI chatbot for ‘disgraceful’ Holocaust denial The Auschwitz Museum has called out social media X’s AI chatbot Grok for generating Holocaust denial content, branding it “a disgraceful assault on the memory” of the Nazi German camp’s victims. The Counter Extremism Project (CEP) is a nonprofit and non-partisan international policy organization working to combat the growing threat posed by extremist ideologies. 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