Alarming UN report on harmful use of coronavirus by terrorist groups | the Chronicle

The United Nations (UN) denounced this Wednesday that “Terrorist groups, extremists and organized crime” took advantage of the coronavirus pandemic (orthocoronavirinae) harming governments, attracting new members, undermining citizens’ trust and inciting the intentional spread of the pathogen through social media.

This is the main conclusion of the report entitled “Stop the Disinformation Virus: The Risk of Social Media Misuse During Covid-19 and the Technology Options to Combat It”. published by the United Nations Institute for Interregional Crime and Justice Research (Unicri).

Antonia De Meo, Director of Unicri, said that “Terrorist, violent extremist and organized crime groups are trying to take advantage of the coronavirus pandemic to expand their activities and undermine the effectiveness and credibility of the government’s response measures.

“It is alarming that some terrorist and violent extremist groups have attempted to misuse social media to incite potential terrorists to intentionally spread Covid-19 and use it as an improvised biological weapon.” evaluated.

He pointed out that they used social media posts “to inspire acts of terrorism” and alerted to cases “In which far-right groups have explicitly called on their supporters to spread the virus by coughing on a local minority or by going to public places where religious or racial minorities gather.”

He said messages had also been detected calling for operatives of the Islamic State who had contracted the disease to “an act as “biological bombs” to intentionally spread the virus among its enemies. “

The report, cited by the Europa Press news agency, In particular, refers to the case of Timothy Wilson, killed by FBI agents on March 24 in Kansas, United States, while he was planning to detonate a bomb in a hospital treating patients with coronavirus.

“The suspect was active in at least two neo-Nazi Telegram channels and had contact with a soldier who had planned an attack on a news network and discussed an attack” on the current President-elect of the United States, Joe Biden.

The groups analyzed also attempted to undermine citizens’ trust in governments to reinforce their message and with it their recruitment strategy, the study continues.

Conspiracy theories include ” the identification of the 5G mobile phone network as the vehicle for transmitting the virus or the false claim that the pandemic was orchestrated by (North American computer mogul) Bill Gates to implant microchips in humans, or the misconception that the virus is a joke and does not exist. “

Finally, note that “The economic crisis triggered by the pandemic has also given the opportunity, mainly to criminal groups, to take control of legal businesses and stores that may be in danger of bankruptcy, thus diversifying their activities, as has happened. produced with the drug cartels in Mexico “.