FBI Director Reports That Neo-Nazis Are Working Together Across The Atlantic
Members and supporters of the National Socialist Movement, one of the largest neo-Nazi groups in the US, hold a rally on April 21, 2018 in Newnan, Georgia. Image by Getty
By Ari Feldman November 1, 2019
Neo-Nazis considered to be domestic terrorism threats by the U.S. government are increasingly communicating and meeting with European hate groups, the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Christopher Wray, told Congress Wednesday.
Speaking to the House Homeland Security Committee, Wray said that these meetings did not appear to be about organizing terrorist actions, but more about sharing their like-minded views.
“We are starting to see racially motivated violent extremists connecting with like-minded individuals online certainly, and in some instances, we have seen people travel overseas to train,” he said, particularly to Ukraine.
“Probably a more prevalent phenomenon that we see right now is racially motivated violent extremists who are inspired by what they see overseas,” he added. “They’re not working together, but they’re just fueled by each other.”
Wray noted that the lack of structure makes it difficult for law enforcement to determine how serious some of the groups are about committing acts of terrorism.
During the hearing, Rep. Max Rose, a Jewish Democratic Congressman representing Staten Island and a section of Brooklyn, asked if the FBI could more effectively monitor certain American neo-Nazi groups if the Ukrainian hate groups they communicated with were registered as foreign terrorist organizations. Wray said that the designation would be up to the State Department.
Ari Feldman is a staff writer at the Forward. Contact him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter @aefeldman
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we still need 300 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Only 300 more gifts needed by April 30
