CultNEWS101 Articles: 2/3/2025 (Book, Radicalization, Child Abuse, Legal, Potter's House)

Book, Radicalization, Child Abuse, Legal, Potter's House

Radicalization: A comprehensive approach to countering extremism

"To understand radicalization one first needs to understand the recruitment process called SLICE, an acronym for Select, Love bomb, Isolate, Control and Exploit. It's one of the common denominators for all fundamentalistic movements, religious as well as political. The book goes into detail on the mechanics of this process and also how language plays a vital role in this.

If you think you are immune to this kind of influence then you definitely need to read this book."

ABC AU: Religious group members found guilty of manslaughter of eight-year-old Elizabeth Struhs

"All 14 members of a fringe religious group have been found guilty of the manslaughter of eight-year-old Elizabeth Struhs, who died after her insulin was withheld.

The leader of the congregation, 63-year-old Brendan Stevens, and the girl's father, 53-year-old Jason Struhs, were acquitted of murder but found guilty of manslaughter.

The remaining 12 members on trial, including the girl's mother Kerrie Struhs and her brother Zachary Struhs, have been found guilty of manslaughter.

The type 1 diabetic became critically unwell and died after her insulin was withdrawn at her home in Toowoomba on Queensland's Darling Downs in January 2022.

The group faced a lengthy judge-only trial in Brisbane last year.

They all represented themselves in court and refused to enter any pleas, which was formally accepted as pleading not guilty.

During the trial, the Supreme Court heard the group rejected the medical system and the use of medications and put their full trust in the healing power of God."

Christian Post: Brother of TD Jakes' accuser claims megachurch pastor tried to sexually assault him too: affidavit

"Pastor Richard Edwin Youngblood — the older brother of Duane Youngblood, whom Bishop T.D. Jakes of The Potter's House hit with a defamation lawsuit last year for alleging the megachurch pastor sexually assaulted him when he was a teenager some 40 years ago — has accused Jakes of trying to sexually assault him, too.

Richard Youngblood's claim is among multiple sworn affidavits supporting his brother included in a 167-page motion filed last Thursday seeking to dismiss Jakes' defamation lawsuit pursuant to Pennsylvania's anti-SLAPP statute. The filing was reviewed by The Christian Post.

"He secured a room with two beds in it, and we went to the room for the night. That night, while I was lying in my bed, I felt Elder Jakes climb into my bed. He pressed his body against mine and asked, 'Youngblood, do you feel that?' He was referencing his erection that he was pressing against my backside," Richard Youngblood wrote in an affidavit filed with a federal court in Pennsylvania."

News, Education, Intervention, Recovery

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Intervention101.com to help families and friends understand and effectively respond to the complexity of a loved one's cult involvement.

CultRecovery101.com assists group members and their families make the sometimes difficult transition from coercion to renewed individual choice.

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The selection of articles for CultNEWS101 does not mean that Patrick Ryan or Joseph Kelly agree with the content. We provide information from many points of view to promote dialogue.

Please forward articles that you think we should add to cultintervention@gmail.com.

Radicalization: A comprehensive approach to countering extremism

To understand radicalization one first needs to understand the recruitment process called SLICE, an acronym for Select, Love bomb, Isolate, Control and Exploit. It's one of the common denominators for all fundamentalistic movements, religious as well as political. The book goes into detail on the mechanics of this process and also how language plays a vital role in this.

If you think you are immune to this kind of influence then you definitely need to read this book.

Håkan Järvå is a licensed psychologist from Sweden. He has been working on the issues of radicalization and cults since 2005, mainly on a practical level in both deradicalization work and preventive work. He authored three books in Swedish on the subject of cults and radicalization, meant for teachers, social workers and other professionals who handle cases of radicalized individuals. In Sweden he led several projects for the local NGO Hjälpkällan to help victims of cults and other extremist movements. Håkan frequently collaborates with local municipalities, the police, social services and schools both in Sweden and internationally. He held several lectures for the Swedish Center for Preventing Violent Extremism. Currently, he is working for the municipality of Gothenburg on countering violent extremism activities and on supervising social workers handling cases of violent extremists and returning foreign fighters. He is a member of the International Cultic Studies Associations advisory board (ICSA) and was a member of the now decommissioned Radicalization Awareness Network expert pool (RAN). As a consultant for Hedayah, he has supported training programs on rehabilitation & reintegration in Tunisia and Indonesia.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DM9S8QKQ?ref=cm_sw_r_ffobk_mwn_dp_BC99SV5GAN5KD17199NP&ref_=cm_sw_r_ffobk_mwn_dp_BC99SV5GAN5KD17199NP&social_share=cm_sw_r_ffobk_mwn_dp_BC99SV5GAN5KD17199NP&language=en-US&skipTwisterOG=1&bestFormat=true&newOGT=1

Influencers driving extreme misogyny, say police

Francesca Gillett

BBC News

July 23, 2024

Online influencers like Andrew Tate are radicalising boys into extreme misogyny in a way that is "quite terrifying", police are warning.

Senior police officer Maggie Blyth said young men and boys could be radicalised in the same way that terrorists draw in followers.

The National Police Chiefs Council described the issue as a "national emergency" as it published a report into violence against women and girls.

The NPCC estimated at least one in 12 women in England and Wales would be a victim of violence every year - or about two million women.

And it said the problem had been growing, with "more complicated types of offending".

Deputy Chief Constable Maggie Blyth said officers who focused on violence against women and girls were now working with counter-terrorism teams to look at the risk of young men being radicalised.

Speaking about harmful content online, she said: "We know that some of this is also linked to radicalisation of young people online, we know the influencers, Andrew Tate, the element of influencing of particularly boys, is quite terrifying and that's something that both the leads for counterterrorism in the country and ourselves from a VAWG [violence against women and girls] perspective are discussing."

Mr Tate is a controversial British-American influencer and self-proclaimed "misogynist" who rose to fame after appearing on Big Brother in 2016.

He is currently awaiting trial in Romania over allegations of rape, human trafficking and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women - charges he denies.

Schools across the UK previously told the BBC they were encountering increasing numbers of pupils who admired Mr Tate.

The wide-ranging report by the NPCC and College of Policing published on Tuesday said violence against women and girls had reached "epidemic" levels.

The report estimated that one in 20 adults - or 2.3 million people - were perpetrators of violence against women and girls every year.

"Nobody in industry and in other sectors and across the public understands just the scale and impact of these crimes," Deputy Chief Constable Blyth told BBC Breakfast.

The report identified several key threats facing victims including sexual violence, domestic abuse, stalking and child sexual abuse.

It found there had been a 37% increase in the number of violent crimes against women and girls between 2018 and 2023.

Police say more than one million such crimes were recorded in England and Wales last year alone, accounting for 20% of all crimes recorded by the police.

Police chiefs say domestic abuse is growing and remains one of the biggest demands on officers.

Some of the rise has been driven by an increase in reporting and more awareness of those crimes.

The College of Policing says it is creating a central hub which would offer police forces help by providing specialist knowledge and training.

The government says it welcomes the hub and aims to halve violence against women and girls over the next decade.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has previously made clear that violence against women and girls will be at the top of her agenda.

So far the detail on government plans has been light, but in its manifesto, Labour said it would introduce new specialist domestic abuse workers in 999 control rooms and put specialist rape investigation units in every force across England and Wales so that early opportunities for prevention and protection were not missed.

This would entail more trained police officers and extra resources at a time when policing faced numerous challenges including retention and morale issues.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cne4vw1x83po

CultNEWS101 Articles: 3/19/2024 (UK, Legal, Radicalisation,, Immortal Consciousness, Antivax, Johannes Kelpius, Cult Intervention, Mahāyāna Buddhism)

UK, Legal, Radicalisation,, Immortal Consciousness, Antivax, Johannes Kelpius, Cult Intervention, Mahāyāna Buddhism

The Week: Shamima Begum: no way home

The embattled former Londoner has been in Syria since February 2015.

"Shamima Begum's hopes of returning to the UK from her detention camp in northeast Syria have been dashed again, said Haroon Siddique in The Guardian.

Last week, three Court of Appeal judges ruled unanimously that Sajid Javid, as home secretary in 2019, had acted lawfully when he revoked her citizenship on grounds of national security.

The court left it to others to judge whether it had been a harsh way of treating someone who may have been "influenced and manipulated" to run off to Syria as a 15-year-old schoolgirl to join Islamic State, merely ruling that the decision had been procedurally fair. It was sufficient that Javid had considered such factors, even if he had ultimately rejected them. Begum's lawyers have promised to fight on, but it's hard to see the Supreme Court overturning this definitive ruling.

'Not entirely culpable'

A good thing too, said Niall Gooch on UnHerd. We can recognise that Begum, now 24, is in a wretched situation, and that she is "not entirely culpable, without concluding that the only right response is for her to return to Britain". There are other factors to consider, such as "the British state's ability to defend itself and assert its authority in the face of monstrous enemies".

Besides, it could be argued that the Government, by depriving Begum of citizenship, is simply recognising the reality that she has 'no allegiance to or affection for Britain, beyond a transactional desire to benefit from the services and quality of life available here'."

FOX 10 Phoenix: Immortal Consciousness & Dr. Duran: Arizona woman leaves cult to find happiness, advocacy

"No matter what expert you ask, they'll say there are still thousands of cults in the United States.

A Gilbert, Arizona woman says many of them are all around us in Arizona – and she would know.

She says she experienced a cult firsthand and wants to help others avoid what she fell for.

Flipping through childhood photos, everything seems normal.

But, Brooke Walker sees it differently now.

"We celebrated Halloween, we celebrated Easter," she said.

She says she was raised in a cult. "100%. Unfortunately."

As an 8-year-old girl, her parents moved her family to a Mesa neighborhood to live with another family and join the church of Immortal Consciousness.

"Looking for faith, but also something different than what they had," she said. "You know, the mainstream stuff."

What they found was a church leader and medium who said she could speak with and summon a 14th-century Englishman named Dr. Duran.

"You could be heavily corrected by the spirit for what you're doing," Walker explained.

She played for us her recording of what they called "a trance." Eventually, the church leader would speak as Duran.

"I had a lot of mixed emotions about it. Mostly, I'm surprised about the amount of power it used to hold over me," Walker said. "This is what the teaching is telling me. This is what the spirit is telling me. All these things are, if something is wrong, it's me. I'm the problem. So you create this belief set that if anything goes sideways, must be your fault."

The church headed north. About 150 members lived in Tonto Village."

The Sunday Times: My MP husband Andrew Bridgen was captured by antivax 'cult'

"Andrew Bridgen was in Sweden speaking at an event hosted by Robert F Kennedy Jr's antivax group while his young son was at home facing a medical crisis.

The former Conservative MP, who has become a leading voice in the global campaign against vaccinations, ignored frantic calls from his wife, Nevena, as their five-year-old's health deteriorated, she claims.

Nevena, whose family hail from Serbia, was alone in London with her sick child, going backwards and forwards to the hospital, while she says her husband was on the streets of Sweden "acting as an antivax revolutionary and neglecting his son during a health emergency".

It was the moment Nevena, 43, finally concluded that her husband had been captured by what she considers a"cult".

Today, she reveals how her marriage and life have been torn apart by a "sect" she claims has "taken over" her husband.

She said: "The first alarming sign of radicalisation was when it was obvious that he was turning on us, when our child got terribly ill … There was no way of pleading with him. The human cost of radicalisation and the devastating impact it can have on individuals and their families, and in this case, our family, was spelled out for me for the first time in bold colours."

Nevena, a classically-trained opera singer, who filed for divorce this month, claims she and her son have been left homeless after her marriage to Bridgen, 59, broke down and he 'abandoned them'."

Friends of the Wissahickon: KELPIUS & HERMIT'S CAVE

Nestled in a serene primordial forest glen, the Hermit's Cave is one of Philadelphia's most intriguing historical landmarks, yet most visitors come upon it by surprise or pass by it unknowingly.

Who was the Hermit?

"Johannes Kelpius, a brilliant Transylvanian scholar, led his followers to the Wissahickon wilderness in 1694 to await the end of the world. In the centuries that followed, lore and legend have surrounded this mysterious Hermit of the Wissahickon.  His historic and symbolic significance has inspired many romantic gothic stories popularized by Philadelphia authors like Edgar Allen Poe and George Lippard, but what do we really know of Kelpius and the first doomsday cult in America?

Young Kelpius was part of a radical German Pietist sect led by Johann Zimmerman called the Chapter of Perfection. Zimmerman studied the Great Comet of 1680 and believed the wonders of the sky were a sign of the end times which he determined would occur in 1694. When Zimmerman died unexpectedly, just as the sect was preparing to set sail for the New World, he bequeathed all his writings, astrolabes, telescopes, and almanacs to twenty-six-year-old Kelpius who became the de facto leader of the group.

These 40 celibate monks (all of whom were men), called themselves "The Society of the Woman of the Wilderness." Their inspiration was based on an elaborate interpretation of the biblical passage from the Book of Revelations 12:16 in which a woman waited at the edge of the wilderness in prayer and meditation to prepare for the End of Days. They interpreted this verse to mean they should find a location at the edge of the wilderness to await the apocalypse."

Intervention101: From Deprogramming to the Intervention 101 Approach: The Evolution of Cult Intervention (Rachel Bernstein, Joe Kelly, Patrick Ryan)

"As the knowledge base of cults, manipulation, and control has expanded, so too has the awareness that intervention is often more complex than at first it might appear. Many cult interventionists have become aware that, in addition to the manipulative and coercive tactics utilized by high control groups, there is often a mental health component that needs to be understood and addressed in order for the intervention to succeed. Our approach begins with an in-depth assessment of the family system to evaluate whether intervention is appropriate at a particular time, what part of family dynamics might be contributing to the situation, and who in the family could be helpful during intervention. For all of these reasons we have found it valuable to collaborate with a mental health professional for a more comprehensive understanding of the overall picture. This talk will explore the development of our family-centered, non-confrontational, respectful approach to understand and effectively respond to the complexity of a loved one's cult involvement. Vignettes from our cases will be presented to illustrate how this collaboration has enhanced our effectiveness as cult interventionists."

RNS: What is Mahāyāna Buddhism? A scholar of Buddhism explains

The Mahāyāna branch of Buddhism likely emerged around the first centuries A.D. and was most readily carried through the Silk Road and maritime trade routes.

News, Education, Intervention, Recovery

CultEducationEvents.com

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Intervention101.com to help families and friends understand and effectively respond to the complexity of a loved one's cult involvement.

CultRecovery101.com assists group members and their families make the sometimes difficult transition from coercion to renewed individual choice.

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Selection of articles for CultNEWS101 does not mean that Patrick Ryan or Joseph Kelly agree with the content. We provide information from many points of view in order to promote dialogue.

Please forward articles that you think we should add to cultintervention@gmail.com.

Charlie Hebdo office attacker ‘radicalised’

Agence France-Presse

March 24, 2021

A Pakistani man who attacked the former offices of the Charlie Hebdo magazine last year was radicalised by videos of preachers in his home country and anti-France demonstrations at the time, Le Parisien newspaper reported.

Zaheer Hassan Mahmood spent the days leading up to the knife attack watching extremist preachers online, the newspaper reported. He said he did not realise the magazine had moved offices after the 2015 attack and presumed the two people he slashed were employees of the publication, the paper said.

https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/charlie-hebdo-office-attacker-radicalised/article34154185.ece/amp/

Online Event: Why People Join, Stay and Leave Groups, A Cult Model - Patrick Ryan

Abstract

Parents are likely to benefit from information about the beliefs, practices, and history of the group their loved one has joined. Research suggests that, in the West, hundreds of thousands of individuals join and leave cultic groups each year. Research studies also suggest that at least a sizable minority of those who join cultic groups are adversely affected. The families of these group members, tend to become concerned about their loved one‘s group involvement.  This session will help family members concerned about a loved one‘s cult involvement or its aftereffects, learn how to assess their situations more effectively. Among the topics to be discussed are: Why people join and leave high-control, abusive groups.

Biography

Patrick Ryan is the founder and former head of TM-EX, the organization of ex-members of Transcendental Meditation.  He established ICSA's online resource (1995-2013), was the editor of AFF News, a news publication for former cult members (1995-1998), has contributed to the Cult Observer,  AFF’s book, Recovery From Cults, is co-author of "Ethical Standards for Thought Reform Consultants," and has presented 50 programs about hypnosis, inner-experience, trance-induction techniques, communicating with cult members, conversion, cult intervention, exit counseling, intervention assessment, mediation, religious conflict resolution, thought reform consultation, eastern groups, transcendental meditation and workshops for educators, families, former members and mental health professionals at ICSA workshops/conferences. Mr. Ryan received the AFF Achievement Award (1997) from AFF, the Leo J. Ryan "Distinguished Service Award" (1999) from the Leo J. Ryan Foundation, and a Lifetime Achievement Award (2011) from ICSA. 

Websites: http://cultmediation.com/;  https://www.intervention101.com/; http://cultrecovery101.com/; https://www.cultnews101.com/

Email: cultintervention@gmail.com 

Phone: (215) 467-4939.

Online Event: Uniting the Continents: Support for the Pacific Rim -- for Families and Former Members Affected by Cultic Groups

* Pacific Rim/UK: September 12/13, 2020, Saturday/Sunday

* North America: September 11/12, 2020, Friday/Saturday

* https://events.culteducationevents.com/registration   

CultNEWS101 Articles: 5/6/2020

Word of Faith, neo-Nazi, KKK, NXIVM, Valley of the Dawn 

Charlotte Observer: Man who feared NC church outbreak where 3 died charged with armed break-in at pastor's home

"A former member of a highly controversial Rutherford County church was arrested Sunday afternoon and charged with breaking into the home of a church leader while carrying a gun.

The break-in follows weeks of heightened tensions over whether the highly secretive Word of Faith Fellowship is hiding an outbreak of COVID-19, which critics say endangers this Foothills county of 67,000 residents, 70 miles west of Charlotte.

On Monday, Word of Faith's attorney told the Observer that three church members who had the coronavirus illness have died and that the church does not know how many other members may be infected."

NBC Montana: CEO's neo-Nazi past derails company's surveillance project

"The Elkhart County Indiana Prosecutor's Office said a pilot project that would install a surveillance system has been put on hold after it was revealed that the founder of the company — called "Banjo" — was formerly involved with neo-Nazi groups and the KKK.

The Banjo system reportedly has the ability to monitor traffic cameras, first responder locations, 911 calls and social media.

The prosecutor's office said the project was put on hold for further review — not canceled outright — because the company's founder, Damien Patton, has expressed regret and remorse about his past.

Patton's past has also become an issue in Utah, where the attorney general has also put a state contract on hold.

"Elkhart County Prosecuting Attorney Vicki Elaine Becker believes in the concept of rehabilitation and the ability of a person to overcome their past with many years of positive actions and changes in thought patterns and priorities," read a press release issued Wednesday. "Some people are successful, many are not. Recognizing this, the Office of the Prosecuting Attorney will be reevaluating the appropriateness of partnering with Banjo until further information is obtained."

Becker did not question the value of the Banjo system but said there could be issues of "trust" because Patton did not disclose his past.

According to a story by Matt Stroud of OneZero Media, Banjo CEO and co-founder Damien Patton, 47, pleaded guilty in 1992 for assisting a KKK leader in a drive-by shooting of a Jewish synagogue. It was a story initially reported by The Tennessean in 1992."

Times Union: NXIVM leader Raniere sentencing is re-set, firmly, for June 23

"The sentencing of NXIVM leader Keith Raniere is now firmly scheduled for June 23 — one way or another.

And one way may be a virtual court appearance due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 59-year-old Raniere, a former Halfmoon resident known within his cult-like NXIVM organization as "Vanguard," had been scheduled to be sentenced in U.S. District Court in Brooklyn on May 21."

The Conversation: Brazilian mystics say they're sent by aliens to 'jump-start human evolution' – but their vision for a more just society is not totally crazy

" ... Several thousand members of the religion known as the Valley of the Dawn gather in silence at a temple outside the Brazilian capital of Brasília. They come from around the world to "synchronize their spiritual energies."

As the Sun's first rays appear over the horizon, the members, in fairy-tale-like garments, chant their personal "emissions" – a ritual invocation of cosmic forces that fills the air with a collective drone.

Valley of the Dawn adherents "manipulate" cosmic energies to heal themselves and others. They describe themselves as members of a spiritual tribe called the Jaguars, who are the reincarnated descendants of highly advanced extraterrestrials sent by God some 32,000 years ago to jump-start human evolution.

Normally, the May 1 Day of the Indoctrinator ceremony attracts Jaguars from across the globe, as well as spectators and journalists."

" ... The Valley of the Dawn has grown steadily since the founder's death in 1985, spreading from Brazil to Portugal, the United States and England.

Outsiders often dismiss the Valley as a cult. A BBC journalist who visited the community in 2012 called it a "refuge for lost souls."

But my research offers an alternative explanation of why some people might find the Valley of the Dawn appealing: It offers a more progressive, egalitarian version of modernity.

Brazil, with its corruption scandals and savage social inequalities, has not always lived up to the motto "order and progress" as inscribed on its national flag. It is not alone. Across much of the West, the promise that modernity would bring higher living standards, greater personal freedoms and a more just society remains largely unfulfilled.

Instead, the 21st century has created low-wage jobs with little security and government institutions that too frequently benefit the richest and most powerful. Individualism has supplanted community, leaving people increasingly isolated and lonely – and that was before coronavirus and social distancing.

The Valley of the Dawn, in contrast, offers a collective life that members find gratifying."

News, Education, Intervention, Recovery

CultMediation.com   

Intervention101.com to help families and friends understand and effectively respond to the complexity of a loved one's cult involvement.

CultRecovery101.com assists group members and their families make the sometimes difficult transition from coercion to renewed individual choice.

CultNEWS101.com news, links, resources.

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Cults101.org resources about cults, cultic groups, abusive relationships, movements, religions, political organizations and related topics.

Selection of articles for CultNEWS101 does not mean that Patrick Ryan or Joseph Kelly agree with the content. We provide information from many points of view in order to promote dialogue.

The So-Called Prophet from Pittsburgh is Gabriel of Urantia (Podcast)

Joseph L. Flatley
Podcast. New episodes released on Tuesdays in January and February 2020.

"The So-Called Prophet from Pittsburgh is Gabriel of Urantia, a self-proclaimed holy man who currently presides over a spiritual community (some call it a cult) in the desert of Southern Arizona. In a fenced-in compound, three generations of spiritual seekers soak in Gabriel's teachings as they wait for the end of the world.

Join investigative journalist Joseph L. Flatley as he travels around the country, speaking to Gabriel's ex-followers, cult experts, and people who knew him before he was a so-called prophet. You'll learn why people join a group like this, why they stay as long as they do, and the challenges they face when they decide to leave."

In the premiere episode, we meet Pittsburgh’s Tony Delevin. He first started hearing voices in the 1980s, after his second marriage fell apart. Eventually, the voices told him to change his name to Gabriel and move to Arizona, where he lives today with his 100-plus followers.
https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/download/5by52r/Prophet_ep_101_128_.mp3?download=true

The first full-length episode begins with a trip to Gabriel's compound. After that, a former follower and one of Gabriel's most outspoken critics, Laird Scott, talks about discovering, joining, and eventually fleeing the group. Finally, a former colleague of Gabriel talks about working with him in Tucson in the 1970s.
https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/download/73bf84/Prophet_ep_102_128_.mp3?download=true

https://www.lennyflatley.net/

Authorities Raid Russian Jehovah's Witnesses

The Moscow Times
December 31, 2019

Authorities raided homes of Jehovah’s Witnesses in northern Russia as part of a criminal probe into extremism against the banned religious organization, investigators said in a statement Monday.

Russia banned the Christian denomination known for door-to-door preaching, close Bible study and rejection of military service and blood transfusions in 2017. Rights groups have condemned the crackdown against the Jehovah’s Witnesses as a violation of religious freedom.

Investigators in the city of Murmansk accused worshippers of “knowingly conducting the activities of the religious organization from April 2017 to the present time.”

The believers “held meetings, personally delivered sermons, distributed religious literature and involved new people in the activities of an extremist organization,” they said in an online statement.

The investigators identified the alleged perpetrators but did not appear to have detained anyone.

“It’s unclear who the case is initiated against,” the U.S.-based Jehovah’s Witnesses organization said on its website.

Two Murmansk-based worshippers were earlier this year indicted as part of a separate extremism case that was launched in 2018.

The Jehovah’s Witnesses group estimates that it has about 170,000 followers in Russia.

The 2017 ban forced almost 400 branches across Russia to shut down and at least 5,000 worshippers to flee the country, Time magazine reported recently.

At least 15 out of 280 Jehovah’s Witnesses on trial have been convicted in Russia. These include Danish citizen Dennis Christensen and Russian nationals Sergei Klimov and Vladimir Alushkin, who are each serving six-year sentences.

https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/12/31/authorities-raid-russian-jehovahs-witnesses-uthorities-raid-russian-jehovahs-witnesses-a68786

Durham teen neo-Nazi became 'living dead'

Daniel De Simone
November 22, 2019
BBC News

The youngest person to be convicted of planning a terrorist attack in the UK identified potential targets in his hometown, began drafting a "guerrilla warfare" manual and tried to obtain a chemical used in terrorist bombings. But the case also focused on the radicalisation process itself, hearing the 16-year-old's preparations for an attack involved a deliberate effort to dehumanise himself and become like the "living dead".

The teenager chronicled his regression in a journal, writing "at one point or another I can look back and see if I was any different." Aged 14, he noted: "I wasn't always a fascist, my red pilling process was slower than most", adding that less than two years earlier he advocated "punk rock ideals and Marxism".

The trial heard much about his ideology: an amalgam of neo-Nazism, Satanism and misanthropy, allied to the belief that a collapse of civilisation should be "accelerated" through acts of violence and criminality.

He was first interviewed by police in autumn 2017, when his school reported a Twitter account he used to express support for the outlawed British neo-Nazi group National Action and pose for a photo with ex-English Defence League leader, Tommy Robinson.

The boy, who cannot be identified because of his age, promised to close the profile and spent time with the government de-radicalisation scheme, Prevent. But, rather than moderating his behaviour, he set out to immerse himself in extreme right-wing literature and online networks.

"A fascist has an obligation to absorb a lot of words," he recorded.note included potential targets in Durham

His immersion came at a time of exceptional depravity. National Action had been banned in 2016, but generated several small British spin-offs, some of which sought to imitate the militant American group, Atomwaffen Division.

The origins of this network were in an online neo-Nazi forum, but by the time it closed in 2017 fascists from around the world were already migrating to new platforms. These digital spaces promote an increasingly berserk world view that proclaims hatred of all, worships a pantheon of "saints" comprising various terrorists and murderers, and demands a commitment to the destruction of society through so-called "accelerationism".

Online channels can gain thousands of followers, all using a shared vocabulary and set of references, although there are disputes over people's ideological commitment or supernatural beliefs, in which Adolf Hitler is often regarded as a divinity.

Central influences include the American neo-Nazi James Mason, who has been convicted of indecent images offences involving a child, and several individuals associated with the occult organisation Order of Nine Angles - described by the prosecution as the "most prominent and recognisable link between Satanism and the extreme right".

The result is a culture in which deviancy and criminality are encouraged - sexual violence and paedophilia are constant themes - with anything justified as long as it is thought to destabilise society and defy what is characterised as slavish morality.

The Durham teenager absorbed these ideas, reading any recommended books and discussing them in his journal, gradually following the logic of his ideology towards a planned attack. In October 2018, he wrote that earlier phases of his political activities, such as debating with others, had "accomplished nothing" and merely got him into trouble at school.

"And now here I am an accelerationist," he added.

The boy actively sought to alter himself in line with the texts he read, including the instruction "shed empathy" on a list of things to do. He adopted an online pseudonym, speaking constantly with other neo-Nazis, telling a forum that his Satanic belief system involved programming oneself to lose any feelings of guilt, becoming the living dead in the process.

"I believe there is primal enjoyment to be had in sadism," he wrote in his journal, stating: "How wonderful it is to be an amoral individual".

He searched for synagogues around the UK, wrote a list of local places in Durham "worth attacking", collected explosives manuals, and tried to secure a dangerous chemical from a fellow extremist in the USA.

When the boy was arrested outside his home in March, detectives found a coded note in his pocket, saying: "Killing is probably easier than your paranoid mind thinks. You're just not used to it. Most were caught because they got sloppy."

warfare" manual

At trial, the boy denied being a neo-Nazi, saying his writings were an extremist "alter ego" generated by feelings of social isolation and created in order to shock others and find a sense of belonging online. He told jurors his political beliefs were "centre right" and that he had a poster on his bedroom wall signed by Nigel Farage.

Prosecutors said the boy was lying to the jury about the fake "persona" and that his actions were not confined to diaries or the internet. They originally alleged that he sexually touched a child as part of his preparations for an attack, saying it was a deliberate "desensitisation technique", although claims about his sexual conduct were ruled inadmissible during pre-trial hearings and will now be heard in a youth court.

linked to the same ideological influences

According to police, eight terrorist plots inspired by right-wing ideologies have been stopped since March 2017. They say there is a "spectrum" of such ideologies that have the potential to generate violence, with the variant adopted by the Durham defendant regarded as perhaps the most extreme of all.

He is now the fourth teenager convicted of terrorism offences in the UK over the past year in which the same set of influences - accelerationism and Satanism - have been central.

One of the many troubling aspects of this case is that a child traversed the full spectrum of right-wing extremism before he had even left school.



https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-tyne-50397477