[ad_1]
State capitals across the country brace for violence after federal law enforcement officials warn governors and police chiefs of the risk of unrest in the wake of the deadly insurgency on Capitol Hill from the United States, according to experts in siege, it was “like putting gasoline on a fire” and will likely serve as the motivation for future attacks.
The FBI warning that armed protests are planned in all 50 states in the days leading up to President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration prompted governors and police chiefs to deploy thousands of officers and equipment to the capitals of the country’s states to thwart potential violence.
“The threats are very credible. And you come out of a credible demonstration in Washington, let’s just call it “successful” in the eyes of the protesters. It’s going to fuel their confidence that they can continue because we haven’t shown them that we can control them, ”said Timothy Dimoff, a former SWAT team leader who runs a security consultancy firm.
“It’s like putting gasoline on a fire,” Dimoff continued. “Now we sent them home and we said you had a successful game plan and can do it again. This is where the problem lies. “
U.S. officials on Wednesday warned of future attacks, in part because of the siege’s success last week. The FBI bulletin noted that extremists could focus on government officials and institutions, as well as racial and religious minorities, journalists, and members of the LGBTQ + community.
He also indicated that the Capitol uprising may have served as a place for extremists of different ideological motives to foster relations. After the attack, people who descended on the capital returned to their homes, where a number have since been arrested for their role in the assault.
John Miller, an assistant commissioner of intelligence and counterterrorism in the New York Police Department, called the movement that participated in last week’s attack “loosely organized” and noted that people had gathered on social networks.
“The propensity for violence sometimes comes down to the individual,” he said Thursday. “Nothing compares to past threats; we have never seen Americans fighting Americans on the streets of the nation’s capital, probably since the Civil War.
Other motivations that could fuel future attacks include anti-government sentiment among extremists, as well as grievances associated with the false narrative that the 2020 presidential election was stolen, according to Wednesday’s bulletin.
“What you are seeing now is a fusion of the movement,” said Jason Blazakis, who retired from the State Department’s Counterterrorism Office in 2018. He said various extremist groups who had operated alone for the past four years had acted in concert during the assault on Capitol Hill last week.
“The swell of everyone passing by – you have Oath Keepers next to Proud Boys next to the white supremacists, that’s what makes this time dangerous,” he said. “The movement is energized and encouraged by a surprise success [January] 6th. I think they are surprised. They had not planned to the Nth degree, and to be able to break the pillar of democracy, that will motivate them.
[ad_2]
Source link