US president Donald Trump has issued an executive order designated ‘Antifa’ as a terrorist group, despite there being no such group – and has worded his order so broadly as to make any form of protest against his fascist immigration ‘police’ treatable as terrorism.
Trump: antifa are terrorists
There has been little to no evidence of violence by anti-fascist protesters; on the contrary, they have frequently been the victims of unprovoked violence from both pro-Israel far-right groups and law enforcement. Despite this – and there being no realistic doubt that Trump and his handlers are fully aware of it – Trump’s order, in part, reads:
[Antifa] uses illegal means to organize and execute a campaign of violence and terrorism nationwide to accomplish these goals. This campaign involves coordinated efforts to obstruct enforcement of Federal laws
through armed standoffs with law enforcement, organized riots, violent assaults on Immigration and Customs Enforcement and other law enforcement officers, and routine doxing [sic] of and other threats against political figures and activists.Antifa recruits, trains, and radicalizes young Americans to engage in this violence and suppression of political activity, then employs elaborate means and mechanisms to shield the identities of its operatives, conceal its funding sources and operations in an effort to frustrate law enforcement, and recruit additional members.
Individuals associated with and acting on behalf of Antifa further coordinate with other organizations and entities for the purpose of spreading, fomenting, and advancing political violence and suppressing lawful political speech. This organized effort designed to achieve policy objectives by coercion and intimidation is domestic terrorism.
Sorry, who…?
There is, of course, no individual group named ‘Antifa’; instead it is an umbrella abbreviation of ‘anti-fascist’ used for all opponents of the fascism that is burgeoning under Trump, a phenomenon in large part driven by the US Israel lobby’s wish to criminalise anti-genocide protest. Peaceful protesters suffering unprovoked violence have routinely been painted by US government and media as ‘hate mobs’ and violent – a practice copied avidly by the UK Israel lobby.
As former New York political candidate Melanie d’Arrigo pointed out:
Trump’s [executive order] designating ANTIFA as a domestic terrorist org is worded so that anyone protesting ICE agents, filming or asking them for ID, or informing people of their rights, can be charged as a domestic terrorist. This isn’t an attack on ANTIFA. It’s an attack on our rights.
Trump’s move follows Keir Starmer’s proscription (terrorist ban) on non-violent direct action group Palestine Action, which has been exploited by UK police forces – despite a High Court judge twice declaring it unlawful – as a generalised excuse to harass and arrest any anti-genocide protester. The ban has also seen the arrest of thousands of human rights protesters, mostly older and disabled people, demonstrating against it – while violent far-right protesters are allowed to run riot with little or no action.
The UK government, meanwhile, admitted last week that it has been working with actual (and banned) terrorist group HTS in Syria for years.
Featured image via the Canary
