BOTTOM LINE UP FRONT: TRAC Research Associate Samantha Roberts this week collected a series of posters from a Telegram channel promoting a white ethnostate in the U.S. west. Designed with a retro style, the posters call for the establishment of an all-white territory in Idaho, Washington, Oregon, and Montana. Emulating the classic "Greetings from . . ." postcards that grew in popularity during the first half of the twentieth century, this twist on the design features the neo-Nazi swastika along with blue, white, and green stripes--the colors of the proposed Northwest Territorial Imperative flag. Additionally, each postcard labels the state with a nickname. For example, Idaho is labeled as "the Free Man's State", possibly referring to the freedom from societal norms and government laws individuals will enjoy if they choose to move there and join the ethnostate. The goal of this imperative is to gather the supporters of the alt-right into one region, thereby strengthening their movement. Among a white nationalist majority, the people can enact their own laws and build a society centered on white supremacist ideology without the judgement of others. The northwest United States provides a territory that is already majority white with low population counts that can easily be outnumbered by an influx of alt-right supporters. This whole region of Idaho, Washington, Oregon, and western Montana comprises another white ethno-state movement held by The Northwestern Front (NWF) and its militant wing, Pine Tree Gang (PTG) that envisions the territory as the "Cascadian Region." Other white nationalist groups, such as The Base, also seek to carve out Cascadia for a white ethno-state. All three of the groups listed above, as well as this specific Telegram channel, identify as eco-fascists. It is worth noting that on 21 May 2021, five rural counties in Oregon voted to secede to Idaho.
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Images (Above): Director Soto; (Middle & Below) Soto's bullet riddled car.
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TRAC Incident Report: Sinaloa Cartel (CDS) Suspected of Assassinating the Director of the Sinaloa State Police, Joel Ernesto Soto in Guamúchil, Sinaloa, Mexico - 24 May 2021 |
At approximately 0730 on Monday, 24 May Joel Ernesto Soto, director of the State Preventive Police (PEP), was shot to death on Monday in Guamúchil, while traveling alone from Los Mochis (where his residence is located) to the state capital, Culiacan. Soto was found dead and with gunshot wounds in the front seats of a recent model white Nissan Sentra. Cristóbal Castañeda Camarillo, Secretary of Public Security, reported that the attack occurred when the police chief was driving on the Los Mochis-Culiacán highway.It was reported that he and his vehicle had been pummeled with no less than 200 bullets. Director Soto typically traveled with a bodyguard and at the time of this report, Soto's bodyguard is missing.
The Sinaloa Cartel (CDS) has been fairly quiet compared to their biggest rival, the Jalisco Nueva Generarion Cartel (CJNG), but as of late, they have been on a new campaign to reestablish dominance in states where CJNG have moved in, such as Sonora and Oaxaca. While the Sinaloa Cartel (CDS) has not outright claimed the assassination of Director Soto, the fact that a key police figure like Soto is now dead combined with the mere suggestion that the Sinaloa Cartel is behind it may be enough to "revive" their power within Mexico and reclaim the top spot from the Jalisco Nueva Generacion Cartel (CJNG).
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(PDF) Islamic State Releases Newspaper "Al Naba" 287 - Released 20 May 2021 (Assaults on PKK, PMU, Hindu Temple, Afghan Police, Congolese, Nigerien & Egyptian Armies) |
TRAC's London-based Analyst Sophia Badawy monitors and posts each week's edition of al-Naba, Islamic State's weekly newsletter. This week, Sophia provides some interesting insight to the edition. First, the Islamic state ignored the clashes between the Palestinians and Israelis for a full 10 days before dedicating this week's Naba editorial article to the conflict. Islamic State's position is that Jerusalem is a promise from religion, and Islam's path is clearly drawn to Jerusalem, thus, Palestinian jihad is the only path and solution. Islamic State states that people should realize that resistance and jihad are completely different; comparing the two as the difference between truth and falsehood. Islamic State went on to asserts that those fighting in Iraq, Nigeria, Afghanistan, Congo, Mozambique or others are closer to Jerusalem than those who claim supporting Jerusalem who aren't using the path of jihad. Adding that there's no difference between Iraq, Sham, Yemen, Khurasan, Chechnya and Jerusalem, and that those who didn't support Raqqa, Baghouz, Mosul, Aleppo will never free Jerusalem. As these are all Muslims' homes, none of those who differentiate between apostates and Jews will ever free Jerusalem. Only when the apostates' armies and governments fall and the Jews can't find anyone to protect them, that Jerusalem will gain its freedom. Islamic States asserts it is a legitimate duty for mujahideen everywhere to support their brothers in Palestine. If fighting the Jews inside Palestine wasn't feasible, they should fight them elsewhere as well as fight their Arab and Western allies. Finally, TRAC expected Islamic State to claim the attack on Toraja Christian farmers in Kalimago village in Indonesia in this week's issue; IS made no mention of the attack. Given that MIT fighters are present in a remote area of Indonesia, details of the attack and claim may take weeks to get released. |
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Images (Above): Screen shots of Al Naba #287 |
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Images: (Above) Conings photo from social accounts; (Middle) Conings Skype Profile; (Below) Conings Twitter profile
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TRAC INCIDENT REPORT: Neo-Nazi Active Duty Solider Armed With Rocket Launcher & Machine Gun, Jurgen Conings, Remains At Large After Making Multiple Threats to Virologist & Military in Leopoldsburg, Limburg, Belgium |
On 18 May, a manhunt was extended to the forest area outside Leopoldsburg, Limburg, Belgium for a wanted soldier, Jurgen Conings, who went AWOL from barracks in Peutie. It was discovered that Conings had also taken with him a bullet proof vest, rocket launcher, a P90 submachine gun and a side arm. Conings left behind a letter at the base stating that he was going to “join the resistance and may not survive." The letter specifically names the nation's top virologist Marc Van Ranst and military personnel as targets. As such, Marc Van Ranst has gone into hiding with his family under state protection and several bases with barracks have been closed; solders have been told to shelter in place inside. Conings, 46 years-old, expressed Nazi sympathies, anti-vaccination and anti-immigration sentiment across several social media platforms. Facebook profile name refers to the rune used by the Nazi paramilitary unit Schutzstaffel (SS) “Siegrune” during World War II. Coning's CV uploaded to LinkedIn list that he at one time guarded a US Embassy in an undisclosed location and had served tours of duty in Yugoslavia, Bosnia, Kosovo, Lebanon, Iraq and Afghanistan. A trained sniper who also has taken survivalist courses, it is believed that Conings can hide in the forests of the border region between Belgium and Netherlands for weeks and has no reason to surrender. Early morning 19 May 2021, around 04:00am local time, Conings vehicle, a grey Audi Q5, was found at the Dilserbos in Dilsen-Stokkem near the Netherlands border. As of 26 May Coning's remains at large. |
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