Attacks by far-right extremists rising in US: Report

The number of attacks carried out by white supremacists and right-wing extremists in the United States has grown significantly over the past decade, according to a new report.

The report, published by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a Washington-based think tank, also found that these attacks doubled in the US from 2016 to 2017.

From 2007 to 2011, right-wing extremists committed five or fewer attacks per year. In 2012, that number rose to 14 and continued at a similar level through 2016. But the number jumped to 31 in 2017, the CSIS report said.

"There are several factors that are driving the rise of far-right extremism in the United States," Seth Jones, the author of the report, told VOA.

"One is the rise in internet and social media use by far-right groups like neo-Nazis, 'sovereign citizens' and others. Second is the connection between a range of these groups and individuals overseas, particularly in Europe, in countries like Germany, Ukraine, Italy and even the UK," he added.

Sovereign citizens refers to groups who plot attacks against government, racial, religious and political targets in the United States.

"A third factor is some political developments in the US," Jones said. "The rise really started before the current US president was even campaigning for presidency, but there definitely has been an increase in the last two years or so. And it does look like individuals have at least been partly energized."

PressTV-US hate crimes spiked 17 percent in 2017: FBI

A report by the Federal Bureau of investigation reveals a dramatic surge of 17 percent in US hate crimes in 2017.

Some analysts say the current political climate in the US, as well as President Donald Trump’s "xenophobic rhetoric and racist policies" have had a major impact on the rise of right-wing extremists in the country.

There were 65 terror attacks in 2017 in the US and right-leaning extremists carried out 37 of those, according to the Global Terrorism Database at the University of Maryland.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) released statistics last week showing a dramatic rise in hate crimes for the third consecutive year in 2017.

The FBI’s annual report revealed that there were a total of 7,175 cases of hate crimes last year, up from 6,121 in 2016, with more incidents motivated by racial, ethnic and religious bias than in previous years.

The Anti-Defamation League, a Jewish organization based in New York City, said in a report released in October that far-right and neo-Nazi groups in the United States have increased an intimidating wave of anti-Semitic harassment against Jewish journalists, political candidates and others.

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