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, CEP researchers located 10 pro-ISIS
accounts on Facebook sharing ISIS propaganda, a manual for making an explosives
detonator published by a pro-ISIS group on JustPaste.It





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Extremist Content Online: Pro-ISIS Facebook Accounts Share Propaganda And
Reupload Footage From 2016 Video



(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, CEP researchers located 10
pro-ISIS accounts on Facebook sharing ISIS propaganda, a manual for making an
explosives detonator published by a pro-ISIS group on JustPaste.It, a warning
from a pro-ISIS tech group regarding a potentially unsafe web browser, and
continued pledges of allegiance to the new ISIS caliph posted on propaganda
websites and pro-ISIS Telegram channels.



In addition, CEP researchers located a variety of neo-Nazi, white supremacist,
and antisemitic content on Meta-owned Instagram and an account linked to a Rise
Above Movement-inspired active club on Google-owned YouTube. Finally, following
an attack on critical infrastructure in North Carolina by unknown individuals,
CEP researchers located posts on Telegram channels and a neo-Nazi website
celebrating and justifying the attack.



ISIS Propaganda Located on Facebook



CEP researchers located 10 pro-ISIS accounts on Facebook in a sample of
content located on December 7. The accounts posted clips from ISIS propaganda
videos, Amaq propaganda photos, ISIS news updates, and additional image and
text-based propaganda. Eight accounts had between 62 and 4,993 friends or
followers, with an average of 1,761. Two Facebook profiles did not have their
number of friends or followers listed.



One profile used a recently released Amaq propaganda photo as an account
picture, and another used a propaganda photo ofAbu Bakr al-Baghdadi
<[link removed]>’s son,
Hudhayfah al-Badri, who was killed in 2018 while attacking a power plant in
Syria, as a profile photo. Several of the video clips had details obscured,
such as color changes or fully or partially covering up logos on the top right
of the screen.



One account uploaded an approximately one-minute clip that showed ISIS snipers
shooting Iraqi security forces and militia members. The video “Picking Heads”
was originally released in March 2016. The clip uploaded to Facebook was
slightly tinted. Fifty-one days after the clip was uploaded it had over 2,100
views.



Clip from the video “Picking Heads,” on Facebook, originally released in 2016.
The victim’s face has been blurred by the researcher. The ISIS logo in the top
right of the screen has been partially obscured. Screenshot taken on December
8, 2022.



Another account, with an unlisted number of friends or followers, posted a
recentannouncement
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from ISIS’s al-Furqan media wing announcing the death of the group’s former
leader, which had 56 views one week after it was uploaded. The same account
also posted an ISIS propaganda photo, taken from footage from the terrorist
group’s 2015 graphic execution of a Jordanian Air Force pilot, Lt. Muath
al-Kaseasbeh, by immolation.



CEP reported the 10 accounts to Facebook on December 7. Eight accounts were
still on the social media site five days later.



Instructions for Making Explosives Detonators Located on JustPaste.It



On December 5, CEP researchers located a page on JustPaste.It that contained
instructions for making detonators for explosive devices using Baofeng walkie
talkies and commercial components. The page was published by the pro-ISIS
online group al-Saqri Foundation, which publishes explosives guides and other
information helpful in committing acts of terrorism. The page had received over
310 views in the five days it was online. JustPaste.It removed the page after
CEP reported it.



Pro-ISIS Tech Group Warns Against Using UC Browser



On December 8, a pro-ISIS tech group Qimam Electronic Foundation (QEF), posted
on the bulletin board website PasteThis.To, warning users to avoid the UC
Browser. The web browser was developed by Alibaba and is primarily used on
mobile devices. The QEF bulletin warned that the browser is not encrypted, has
poor privacy protections, and is vulnerable to malware. QEF has previously
shared information on encrypted communications and online security, has made
recommendations
<[link removed]>
for email services, and offeredassistance
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in removing ransomware.



Pledges of Allegiance to New ISIS Leader Continue



Between December 5 and December 10, ISIS groups in at least seven different
ISIS provinces released photo propaganda depicting pledges of allegiance to the
new ISIS caliph,Abu al-Hussain al-Hussaini al-Qurashi
<[link removed]>
. Seven photosets were posted on ISIS propaganda websites and pro-ISIS Telegram
channels for West Africa (Central Nigeria), Pakistan, Tunisia, India,
Mozambique (Cabo Delgado), Central Africa (Beni), and Lebanon. In total, at
least 19 different pledges of allegiance from ISIS self-proclaimed provinces,
including several from the same province, have been released. A member of a
chat group in a pro-ISIS RocketChat room stated that it was important for the
group’s followers to spread information regarding the legitimacy of the new
ISIS leader on social media.



ISIS fighters allegedly in Nangade District of Cabo Delgado, Mozambique
pledging allegiance to ISIS’s new caliph Abu al-Hussain al-Hussaini al-Qurashi
in an Amaq photoset released on December 7.



White Supremacist and Antisemitic Content Located on Instagram



In a sample of content located on December 8, CEP researchers located seven
Instagram accounts that posted a variety of neo-Nazi, white supremacist, and
antisemitic content. Accounts posted antisemitic videos, content promoting the
white genocide conspiracy theory, a video from a neo-Nazi internet influencer,
and photos and videos promoting demonstrations by the Proud Boys,Patriot Front
<[link removed]>,
and the White Lives Matter movement. Two accounts either used an antisemitic or
white supremacist slogan in their profile, and one account had a profile photo
of an antisemitic meme. Three of the seven accounts promoted recent
demonstrations of drag events and encouraged their followers to get involved.
CEP reported the accounts to Instagram, who removed three accounts within three
days.



An account advertising a white supremacist group and recent activities on
Instagram. Screenshot taken on December 8, 2022.



Active Club YouTube Account Located



On December 7, CEP located a YouTube account for a chapter of a Rise Above
Movement-inspired active club in the Netherlands and Flanders. Active clubs are
a decentralized white supremacist movement that encourages organizing based on
combat sports and propaganda activities. The YouTube account uploaded four
videos that showed individuals working out and practicing boxing. The page also
contained a link to the group’s Telegram page, where they posted contact
information and links for several other white supremacist groups and
propagandists. CEP reported the account to YouTube, but it was still online
five days later.



White Supremacists and Neo-Nazis Celebrate Moore County, North Carolina Attack
on Electric Substations



Following the December 3 attack on two power substations by unknown individuals
using
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a “high-powered rifle” to destroy substation equipment in Moore County, North
Carolina, that initially left 45,000 homes and businesses without electricity,
white supremacists and neo-Nazis celebrated and encouraged additional attacks
on Telegram.



A prominent Telegram channel that has been removed from the platform multiple
times called the attack “a beautiful escalation.” Other users posted a video
containing information on which substation components to target. Users also
posted information on making explosives. Telegram commenters advocated for
similar future assaults and celebrated what they falselystated
<[link removed]>
was the cancelation of a drag show.



A website that has endorsed the Atomwaffen Division
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and its successor groups stated that the attack was justified to shut down
drag shows. The site linked to an online map of U.S. electrical infrastructure.
A similar map wasshared
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on a dark web forum in December 2021 in a post encouraging the targeting of
the electrical grid.



Video posted on a neo-Nazi Telegram channel encouraging attacks on
infrastructure, posted on

December 4.



Rinaldo Nazzaro
<[link removed]>
, the founder ofThe Base
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, stated on Telegram that the attack could only be successful if an individual
or group took credit. On December 7, a neo-Nazi channel dedicated to
information and operations security with over 11,000 subscribers celebrated a
lateNovember
<[link removed]>
attack
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on electrical infrastructure in Oregon that was recently made public and
stated that further attacks would make people “desperate and hard to control.”
A member of a neo-Nazi Telegram chat hoped that other attacks on electrical
infrastructure were imminent, which could allow individuals to commit crimes
while surveillance systems are inoperable.



Attacking electrical infrastructure, including substations, has been strongly
and frequently promoted by the neo-Nazi accelerationist movement. On June 1,
2022, neo-Nazi accelerationistsreleased
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a manual that advocated for assaults on the U.S. electrical grid instead of
mass shooting attacks targeting regular people, arguing that targeting
infrastructure would cause more damage, eventually leading to societal
collapse. The 14-page document included information on the 2013Metcalf Sniper
Attack
<[link removed]>
, where unknown individuals destroyed 17 electrical transformers in California
with rifles.



Additionally, a neo-Nazi accelerationist book released
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online in June 2021, an approximately 260-page bookpublished
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online in December 2021, and a bookreleased
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in July 2022 included sections devoted to advocating for attacks on electrical
infrastructure to promote chaos and fear and lead to a breakdown of order and
increase distrust of the government. The July book included diagrams of various
electrical infrastructure systems and information on using firearms against
transformers. In August 2021, members of a neo-Nazi cell werecharged
<[link removed]>
with “conspiracy to damage the property of an energy facility in the United
States,” in addition to firearms-related crimes.



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