Saudi Crown Prince States: Islamic Law Must be Modernized

Clarion Project August 6, 2021View in browser ([link removed])


** The Extremism Roundup
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Promoting Civil Discourse and Marginalizing the Extremes
A weekly compilation of the most important developments in the struggle against radical ideologies


** Islamist & Anti-Muslim Extremism
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RYAD KRAMDI/AFP via Getty Images

Saudi Crown Prince States: Islamic Law Must be Modernized
* The Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia recently made the dramatic statement ([link removed]) that Islamic doctrine and jurisprudence must be reinterpreted and modernized. Muslim reformer Hany Ghoraba pointed out ([link removed]) that the grand imam of Al-Azhar University in Egypt then called for modernizing Islamic teachings and criticized the “rigidity of contemporary Islamic jurisprudence.”

Islamists Flood Pro-Trump Social Network With Jihadist Propaganda
* ISIS supporters have swarmed ([link removed]) GETTR, a new pro-Trump social media site, with jihadist propaganda, including videos of beheadings. At least 250 accounts have been reportedly ([link removed]) found.

Tech Giants Are Failing to Act on User Reports of Antisemitism
* A new study determined ([link removed]) that 84 percent of antisemitic posts reported to social media platforms are not removed. A sampling of 714 posts have been viewed over 7 million times by users. The authors’ point was proven when Twitter recently suspended ([link removed]) the Nation of Islam’s account for spreading misinformation about covid vaccines, and not because of its consistent antisemitism.

Latest Islamist Extremism Developments
* In Amarillo, Texas, a naturalized U.S. citizen from Iran has been charged ([link removed]) with possession of a destructive device and possession of explosive components after an explosion at his home led law enforcement to discover bomb parts. No information about his motivation has been released.
* In Florida, the imam of the North Miami Islamic Center was found to have preached ([link removed]) that “the Jews” are the “lowest of the lowest” of Allah’s creations and that Jews are deceiving the world about the Holocaust in order to make money. Imam Kablawi has stated that the FBI is investigating him for ties to ISIS and involvement in terrorism.
* In Kentucky, Imam Omar Zaid advocated ([link removed]) for a military coup to overthrow the Biden Administration and directly endorsed violence by preaching, “If good men do not pick up the gun and kill the right people, the powers that be are going to force a sort of pseudo civil war.”
* In California, Sheikh Tarik Ata of the Orange County Islamic Foundation preached ([link removed]) in favor of violent jihad against the “Nazi-like” state of Israel. He also said that Muslims should aspire to be like those in Turkey who have volunteered to fight Israel. Sheikh Ata also claimed that Muslims have never persecuted Jews.


** Alt-Right & Alt-Left Extremism
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David Ryder/Getty Images

Alt-Left/Anarchist Train Sabotage Attempts Uncovered
* In Washington state, an Alt-Left extremist has pled guilty ([link removed]) to committing a terror attack on a railway in November 2020 by setting up a shunt on a track, possibly derailing a train. One other woman has also been indicted. Over 40 shunts were discovered on train tracks last year. In December, a train was derailed ([link removed]) , causing a large fire and oil spill. Anarchist websites said the purpose of the attacks was to stop a pipeline from being built through land belonging to indigenous peoples.

Latest Alt-Left Developments
* In Seattle, a supporter of Antifa is running for Seattle City Attorney ([link removed]) and is tied for the lead. Nicole Thomas-Kennedy has tweeted in support of riots, saying “Property destruction is a moral imperative.” She explicitly supported Antifa “Black Bloc” extremists who blocked traffic as “bad*ss” who she “respect[s].” Thomas-Kennedy also demonized police as “armed thugs.”
* In Portland, an Alt-Left extremist was arrested ([link removed]) for assault and felony unlawful use of a weapon and then released without bail. He was previously arrested for throwing an explosive at police officers during a riot.
* The Biden Administration’s new National Security Council plan to combat domestic terrorism is being criticized ([link removed]) by Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) for failing to mention anarchist extremism. Grassley stated that 500 domestic terrorism investigations were opened by the FBI during last year’s rioting, which is about 25 percent of the overall total.
* A new poll ([link removed]) found that 10 percent of registered voters have a very or somewhat favorable opinion of Antifa. Another 8 percent said their opinion was only “somewhat unfavorable.” A different poll ([link removed]) found that 23 percent of likely voters say that those arrested in last year’s riots should not be prosecuted.
* The survey also found that 20 percent of likely voters agree with the Black Lives Matter ([link removed]) organization’s denunciations of the American flag and Thin Blue Line flag as symbols of racism.
* A poll found ([link removed]) that 66 percent of likely U.S. voters want Congress to investigate the wave of rioting that included 574 violent protests that injured over 2,000 police officers.

Latest Alt-Right Developments
* In Georgia, a former police officer and Marine veteran was sentenced ([link removed]) to about four years in prison for illegal possession of 11 firearms, some of which were marked with neo-Nazi symbols. He was discovered to be part of an extremist militia called “Shadow Moses.” Investigators found him talking about his plans to commit hate crimes based on race, planning for a civil war, and boasting of physically abusing and arresting black people on false charges as a police officer.
* The Marine Corps has kicked out ([link removed]) a lieutenant after someone on Twitter discovered a picture of him standing next to white nationalist Richard Spencer at a neo-Nazi rally. He also made a social media post of an image that included a racial slur against former President Obama. The Marine Corps says he has a tattoo associated with a white supremacist group, advocated extremist doctrine and lied about not being a member of a white supremacist group.
* In Alaska, an assistant attorney general has been fired ([link removed]) after “anti-fascist” activists online discovered that he used an online pseudonym to make antisemitic and racist remarks. Matthis Cicotte is part of an Alt-Right Mormon extremist group called Deseret Nationalists. He advocated ([link removed]) for political violence and defended the white supremacist terrorist who killed a counter-protestor in a vehicular attack during the 2017 Unite the Right rally.
* On the second anniversary of the terrorist attack ([link removed]) at a Walmart in El Paso that targeted Hispanics, a memorial to the 23 victims whose lives were lost was unveiled. ([link removed]) The perpetrator was a white supremacist who believed in the "Great Replacement" ([link removed]) conspiracy theory that claims there’s an organized genocide against white people by other ethnic groups.
* Two more Washington D.C. police officers who battled rioters on January 6 have committed suicide ([link removed]) , bringing the total number of suicides to four. The recent congressional hearing ([link removed]) that featured harrowing bodycam footage and emotional testimony from four officers who resisted the rioters showed how physical injuries and mental trauma is often overlooked when acts of extremism are covered by the news media, which focuses almost solely on the number of deaths.
* The FBI says it has been unable ([link removed]) to identify over 300 people who took part in the January 6 attack, over 200 of whom attacked police officers. So far, about 560 participants have been charged ([link removed]) , including 30 who pled guilty.
* A new poll found that 7 percent of registered voters say they have a very or somewhat favorable opinion ([link removed]) of white supremacists. Another 6 percent said their opinion was only “somewhat unfavorable.” When the terminology was changed to “white nationalists,” 10 percent of registered voters said they have a very or somewhat favorable opinion. Another 10 percent said their opinion is only “somewhat unfavorable.”


** Hostile Foreign Influence Operations
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NOEL CELIS/AFP via Getty Images



Chinese Regime Agents Indicted for Intimidation and Harassment
* The Justice Department has indicted ([link removed]) nine individuals, including defendants in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, of being agents of the Communist Chinese regime. The group is part of a CCP campaign to intimidate and harass certain Chinese nationals living in the U.S. into moving back to China. The operation includes threats to harm the victims’ family members in China.

China Found to be Greatest Threat to US
* A new poll ([link removed]) found that 50 percent of Americans chose China as the country that poses the greatest threat to the U.S., followed by Russia (29 percent), North Korea (9 percent) and Iran (3 percent).


** Other Ideological Extremism
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ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images



QAnon Supporter Attacks to ‘Defend’ America
* A QAnon adherent in Wisconsin pled guilty ([link removed]) to firing a paintball gun at two reservists at a Wisconsin Army Reserve Center. The attacker told the soldiers, “This is for America!”

Traditional American Life Disappearing, Finds Poll
* A new poll ([link removed]) found that 29 percent of Americans agree that “a time will come when patriotic Americans have to take the law into their own hands.” Thirty-five percent agreed that “the traditional American way of life is disappearing so fast that we may have to use force to save it.”

QUOTABLE


** “No one has ever been insulted into agreement. Even worse, contempt toward your foes creates what psychologists call the boomerang effect: If you insult someone with whom you disagree, the odds are greater than 3 to 1 that the person will harden his views against your position. Hate is self-defeating.”
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-Prof. Arthur C. Brooks, "Opinion: Want to be Happier? Take This Lesson From Martin Luther King Jr."



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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.

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