U.S. designates Iran-aligned Ansar Allah al-Awfiya as terrorist organization

The United States has designated Iraq-based Harakat Ansar Allah al-Awfiya as a terrorist organization as the Biden administration cracks down Iran proxy militias amid Israel’s war in Gaza. The U.S. State Department sanctioned the Iran-backed group as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist organization along with its 46-year-old secretary general, Muzhir Ma’lak al-Sa’idi. “The United States…

Read More

Terrorist Designations of Nordic Resistance Movement and Three Leaders

The United States remains deeply concerned about the racially or ethnically motivated violent extremist (REMVE) threat worldwide and is committed to countering the transnational components of violent white supremacy. Today, the Department of State is designating Nordic Resistance Movement (NRM) as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13224, as amended.…

Read More

US removes Cuba from list of countries not cooperating fully against terrorism

The U.S. removed Cuba from a short list of countries the United States alleges are “not cooperating fully” in its fight against terrorism, a State Department official said on Wednesday. The official cited the resumption of law enforcement cooperation between Cuba and the U.S. as one the reasons why the previous designation was deemed “no…

Read More

Terrorist Designation of the Houthis

The Department of State today is announcing the designation of Ansarallah, commonly referred to as the Houthis, as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist group, effective 30 days from today. Since November, the Houthis have launched unprecedented attacks against international maritime vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, as well as military forces positioned…

Read More

Overly broad terrorist watchlist poses national security risks, Senate report says

A growing terrorist watchlist and numerous screening processes implemented after the 9/11 attacks to identify travelers who could be a threat are uncoordinated and too broad, a dynamic that pose risk to national security, according to a new Senate report. The 43-page report, released Tuesday by Democrats on the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee,…

Read More

US reviewing possible ‘terrorist’ designations for Houthis

The United States is reviewing “potential terrorist designations” for Yemen’s Houthi rebel group in response to its seizure of a cargo ship, White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said on Tuesday. Kirby’s comment was significant because one of the Biden administration’s first acts after taking office in January 2021 was revoking terrorist designations of…

Read More

To help curb terrorism and violence threats, DHS awards $20M to local communities

The Department of Homeland Security on Wednesday announced $20 million in grant funding aimed at preventing targeted violence and terrorism in the United States. The grant money, provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, is aimed at helping local communities prevent and combat targeted violence in the U.S. by offering money that can be used…

Read More

U.S. Attorney Ritz Launches National Security and Civil Rights Unit

United States Attorney Kevin Ritz has announced the creation of a National Security and Civil Rights Unit within the Criminal Division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Tennessee. This move permanently positions a supervisory attorney and several prosecutors to respond to and prevent hate crimes and civil rights violations, as well…

Read More

Counterterrorism: Action Needed to Further Develop the Information Sharing Environment

Federal agencies have started projects to improve how they share terrorism-related information with the intelligence community and other public and private partners. However, there hasn’t been a Program Manager to review or assess the impact of these projects since 2017. As a result, it’s unclear if these programs are meeting the priority objectives set in…

Read More