News Releases

ASSAF KFOURY, kfoury@bu.edu
Kfoury recently wrote the piece “Hamas: From Candidate Enforcer to Implacable Foe,” which states: “In September 1973, a pious Palestinian schoolteacher, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, presided over the founding of al-Mujamma al-Islami (the ‘Islamic Gathering’ or the ‘Islamic Gathering Center’) — or al-Mujamma for short — at a mosque in Gaza. Yassin was a refugee from al-Jura, a village destroyed in 1948 near the present-day city of Ashkelon in Israel.

“Yassin … categorically refused to join the resistance in any form, despite repeated urgings by the others. … While the nationalist resistance groups were systematically dismantled and decimated, Yassin was taking advantage of Israel’s deliberate benign neglect. He was patiently expanding his network of charitable and social activities throughout the Gaza Strip.

“In the words of Gaza’s military governor (general Yitzhak Segev) in 1986: ‘We extend some financial aid to Islamic groups via mosques and religious schools in order to help create a force that would stand against the leftist forces which support the PLO.’ …

“In an internal memorandum dated March 1984, an advisor (Avner Cohen) of Gaza’s Israeli commander described al-Mujamma and the rest of the Islamist network as a golem — a creature in Jewish folklore formed out of lifeless substance which, when brought to life by ritual incantations, ultimately escapes (and in this case, turns against) its creator.”

The first Intifada, which began in 1987, avoided the use of firearms but was ultimately crushed. Hamas was formed shortly thereafter with its initial charter, which had a “scrambled mixture of the Brotherhood’s socially puritanical version of Islam, several concessions to the nationalism espoused by the PLO, and a superficial rehash of Euro-centric antisemitism.” (Hamas revised its charter in 2017.)

Kfoury added: “A major beneficiary of the Oslo agreements and post-Oslo period was undoubtedly Hamas, as the main party that did not fall for an illusory peace agreement between Israelis and Palestinians. …

“In 2006 Hamas beat Fatah in Legislative Council elections, as the latter was increasingly perceived as a subcontractor for Israeli occupation. …

“All Israeli leaders have tried to play the divide-and-rule game, but perhaps none played it as deviously and myopically as Netanyahu. ‘Anyone who wants to thwart the establishment of a Palestinian state has to support bolstering Hamas and transferring money to Hamas,’ he told an audience of Likud members in March 2019. ‘This is part of our strategy — to isolate the Palestinians in Gaza from the Palestinians in the West Bank,’ he declared.”

Kfoury also quotes Sara Roy, author of Hamas and Civil Society in Gaza (Princeton University Press): “The current desecration of Gaza is the latest stage in a process that has taken increasingly violent forms over time. In the 56 years since it occupied the Strip in 1967, Israel has transformed Gaza from a territory politically and economically integrated with Israel and the West Bank into an isolated enclave, from a functional economy to a dysfunctional one, from a productive society to an impoverished one. It has likewise removed Gaza’s residents from the sphere of politics, transforming them from a people with a nationalist claim to a population whose majority requires some form of humanitarian aid to sustain themselves.”

Medea Benjamin, cofounder of the peace group CODEPINK, posted video on X late Tuesday: “Is active duty airman Larry Hebert, now on day 10 of his hunger strike for Gaza, facing retribution? Today, after bravely confronting the Air Force Chief of Staff regarding U.S. complicity in the Gaza genocide, he’s been ordered back to his post, abruptly canceling his leave.”

Hebert asked Gen. David W. Allvin on Capitol Hill about the U.S. government’s backing of Israel after Allvin testified before Congress: “I would just like to know why we’re committing a genocide and why we’re breaking U.S. and international law. Why are we allowed to do this?”

Hebert’s hunger strike has been covered by outlets ranging from Military.com: “Airman Starts Hunger Strike at White House over Gaza, Inspired by Another Airman’s Self-Immolation Death” to Democracy Now: “Active-Duty U.S. Airman, Inspired by Aaron Bushnell, on Hunger Strike Outside White House over Gaza.”

Hebert said: “When Aaron Bushnell, a fellow Airman, took his own life at the Israeli Embassy [on Feb. 25] for the people of Gaza, it touched me deeply. I knew I had to speak out in opposition to our government sending Israel the bombs and rockets to commit genocide.”

MIKE FERNER, mike@veteransforpeace.org, @VFPNational
Ferner is National Director Veterans For Peace and is in contact with Hebert as he is traveling back to his base in Spain over the next two days. Ferner said: “Veterans For Peace congratulates Senior Airman Larry Hebert for doing what every conscientious member of the military should do — question their leadership when they see them going off the rails. By standing up to General Allvin yesterday and for fasting the last ten days in front of the White House, Larry is inspiring many others to question and resist. That is exactly what VFP will do until this killing stops.” The group has various actions planned in Washington, D.C.

Ferner was featured on an IPA news release last month: “Vets Urging Criminal Investigations of Biden Weapons to Israel at State Dept. Offices” about violations of Conventional Arms Transfer Policy, the Foreign Assistance Act, the Arms Export Control Act, the U.S. War Crimes Act, the Leahy Law, and the Genocide Convention Implementation Act.

Monday Morning, Nicaragua presented its case to the International Court of Justice against Germany under the Genocide Convention for “facilitating genocide” by Israel against the Palestinians in Gaza. See AP feed of the hearing.

See clips of the hearing, from Nicaraguan representatives, noting that UN officials were warning of crimes against humanity as early as Oct. 10. Another lawyer for Nicaragua argues: “Nobody owns the trademark of genocide. No state, not Israel, not Germany, can be free of the fundamental rules of international law.” Al Jazeera English reports: “Nicaragua to ICJ: End Germany’s support of Israeli ‘genocide’ in Gaza.”

See IPA news release from Friday which features experts and activists in the U.S. and Germany, still available for interviews: “Monday: Nicaragua v Germany at the World Court on Israel and Genocide Convention.”

The New York Times on Monday claimed: “The court has not yet accepted the case, but it is obliged to react quickly to requests for emergency measures, as in this case.” Prof. Francis Boyle (featured on the IPA news release from Friday) commented: “This is preposterous. Of course the court accepted the case. That is why the court previously issued an order for the hearings today and tomorrow. Nicaragua has basically won just by getting the hearing of its claims today in front of the court and in front of the entire world. A very powerful case against Germany for aiding and abetting Israeli genocide against the Palestinians as well as implicating the U.S. for collaborating with Germany.” Boyle noted that exactly 40 years ago, Nicaragua filed suit against the U.S. at the ICJ for its illegal war against Nicaragua. Boyle added that Nicaragua won that lawsuit and that the ICJ ruling against the U.S. was useful in getting charges dismissed against people engaging in civil resistance against the U.S. policy. See his book, Defending Civil Resistance Under International Law.

Today Biden is in Madison, Wisconsin. The group Madison for a World BEYOND War and others are organizing protests.
Stefania Sani, co-coordinator of Madison for a World BEYOND War, explained, “The world’s leading weapons dealer, the U.S. government, should send no more weapons to Ukraine, Israel or anywhere in the world. We know that these billions of dollars of our tax money are urgently needed for humans and the planet, not for weapons to kill and maim people.”

The group notes: “A new Gallup poll March 27 shows 74 percent of Democrats disapprove of Israel’s handling of the war on Palestine, and 55 percent of all Americans disapprove. The Biden administration is shifting its public rhetoric against the Gaza genocide, but the Guardian reported on March 29 that the U.S. government is quietly transferring billions more in weapons to Israel.

“More than one-third of Americans (poll here) believe Israel is committing genocide. Almost half of those surveyed aged 18-29, 49 percent, say Israel is committing genocide.  An Israel Palestine ceasefire resolution now stands before the Wisconsin legislature, Resolution 92.  Madison City Council unanimously passed a ceasefire resolution in December.

“Congress has been advancing supplemental funding legislation which includes $14.3 billion for weapons and military ‘assistance’ for Israel while Israel commits genocide in Gaza; and $61 billion to continue the war in Ukraine when there is no military solution — only a diplomatic one.

“Wisconsinites will demonstrate on Monday to call for ceasefires in Gaza, Ukraine and everywhere. The Biden administration and Congress need to stop sending weapons. Humans should negotiate to settle conflicts, not kill each other.”

Available for interviews: Janet Parker, Stefania Sani, warabolition@gmail.com

On Monday, April 8, the International Court of Justice, also called the World Court, will begin two days of hearings on Nicaragua’s lawsuit against Germany under the Genocide Convention for “enabling Israel to perpetrate genocidal acts.”

The hearings will be viewable here beginning 10 a.m. local time (4 a.m. ET). In January, in a similar suit brought by South Africa against Israel, the ICJ declared that Israel must stop all genocidal acts against the Palestinians in Gaza and in March, it gave additional orders.

The Nicaraguan application states: “In 2004, well before the most recent assault of Israel against the Gaza Strip, the Court had reaffirmed that Palestine was an occupied territory and that the Palestinian people had a right to self determination. The Court also recalled that all States had the obligation not to render aid or assistance in maintaining that situation. [PDF of 2004 ICJ ruling] Germany ignored this obligation then and has compounded this breach by continuing to aid and assist Israel after the most recent and even grosser violations of peremptory norms of general international law and conventional obligations. …

“Germany has provided political, financial and military support to Israel fully aware at the time of authorization that the military equipments would be used in the commission of great breaches of international law by this State and in disregard of its own obligations. In particular, the military equipment provided by Germany enabling Israel to perpetrate genocidal acts and other atrocities, included supplies to the front line and warehouses, and assurances of future supplies such as ammunition, technology and diverse components necessary for the Israeli military.” [See PDF of Nicaraguan application.]

The following analysts and activists are available for interviews:

JOHN QUIGLEY, quigley.2@osu.edu
Professor emeritus of international law at Ohio State University, Quigley’s books include The Statehood of Palestine: International Law in the Middle East Conflict (Cambridge University Press). Currently (Friday), the UN Security Council is discussing the Israeli attack on Gaza. Quigley was featured on the IPA news release “Beyond U.S. Isolation at UN, What’s Not Being Done” about the Uniting for Peace process which allows the General Assembly to assert itself when the Security Council fails in its responsibility to maintain peace and security.

FRANCIS BOYLE, fboyle@illinois.edu
Boyle is professor of international law at the University of Illinois College of Law. He represented Bosnia at the ICJ in its Genocide Case against Yugoslavia. He was recently on the IPA news release dealing with the Nicaragua case. Boyle has been in contact with the Nicaraguan legal team and shared material with them. See his recent appearances on “Flashpoints,” “Democracy Now” and MSNBC.

DIETER KATTERMANN, Dieter.Kattermann@gmx.de
Kattermann works with a coalition of German peace groups which just released a statement: “No More German Contribution to the Genocide In Gaza!” which states: “A long trail of genocide runs through [German] history in the 20th century, beginning with the Nama and Herero in its former colony in what is now Namibia and continuing with the Holocaust of Jews, Sinti and Roma, as well as many other population groups, especially in Eastern Europe, in the course of the Second World War. Has it really operated a turnaround? Today, it denies the colonialist character of Zionism and supports Israel’s current genocidal policy, politically, ideologically and above all militarily, through a misconceived solidarity with the Jewish victims of that time. In 2023, it even increased its arms export licenses for Israel tenfold, most of them after 7 October. Germany is Israel’s second most important arms supplier after the USA, but the USA has legally ruled out charges of genocide at the ICJ. Germany was also one of the first to end vital support to, and through, UNRWA. … On these two days [April 8 and 9], rallies and vigils will be organized in front of the International Court of Justice in The Hague and in front of many embassies and consulates of the Federal Republic of Germany abroad.”

HEINRICH BUECKER, email@hbuecker.net, @berlinSTOPwar
Buecker is with Coop Anti-War Café in Berlin and will be holding protests on Saturday there.

CodePink is organizing rallies outside the German mission to the UN and at the consulates Los Angeles and San Francisco on Monday, April 8. The Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom is holding a rally at the German embassy in Washington, D.C. on Monday at 2 p.m.

[Meanwhile, on Friday, the group Law for Palestine put out a statement on “Urgent Legal Action Against German Arms Exports to Israel,” attempting to stop delivery of weapons including “500,000 rounds of ammunition for machine guns.” See link for report and livestream.]

Project 2025, a sweeping policy blueprint for the next Republican president, is a 920-page plan written by the Heritage Foundation and other right-wing groups. The Global Project Against Hate and Extremism (GPAHE) is putting out weekly updates on the plan. 

WENDY VIA; wendy@globalextremism.org 
     Via is president and cofounder of GPAHE. 

ANNE NELSON; an115@columbia.edu 
    Nelson is the author of “Shadow Network” and a lecturer on issues related to international affairs, media and human rights. 

Via told the Institute for Public Accuracy: “People are not understanding how serious this thing is, and how many of the things they [Project 2025 drafters] want to accomplish in the plan are already happening at the federal and state level. Regardless of who wins this November, it’s serious. It’s not just progressives that should know about this. Everyone should know.” 

Nelson said: “The implementation side should be taken seriously if there is a Republican victory, especially if they take Congress and remove guardrails from the courts… They have a concrete action plan for each agency.”

The plan currently has nearly 100 sponsors. Via said: “Some [sponsors] have racist, white supremacist ties, like Turning Point USA. These groups put on a front: They’re highly educated, reasonable, highly religious, and are in it to protect people’s ability to worship as they wish. But when you go behind the curtain, you get racist and anti-LGBTQ, anti-woman, conspiracy theories.”

Thus far, Donald Trump has asserted he has his own platform, called Agenda 47. “He doesn’t want it to look like he’s getting fed [Project 2025],” Via said. “To my knowledge, he hasn’t contradicted anything in it. These people are talking to Trump on a regular basis.”

Both Via and Nelson stressed the environmental impacts of Project 2025. “No one is taking on the environmental issues,” Nelson said. “They would be far-reaching and transformative.” Via noted: The plan “takes away rule-making authority from the [federal] agencies. [The plan] would overturn all of that in favor of industry and energy. They want to get rid of the endangered species list because it stops building and industry. [They argue] the U.S. must be completely independent from other nations.” 

Nelson added: “Very few people have read [the entire plan]. The way it is put together is overwhelming… They padded it so that it is unrealistic to read 900 pages of mind-numbing prose. I think that was intentional.

“The biggest thing people are missing is the role of the fossil fuel industry. The environmental regulation passage is horrific… The fossil fuel industry is all over these movements. They don’t give a toss about sexual politics. That’s just how they get their voting bloc… The fossil fuel industry, driven by Koch networks, is trying to reverse environmental protection and regulation. That can be done and has been done.” 

The plan would end the focus on climate change and green subsidies, and remove energy efficiency standards for home appliances. “They go department by department,” Nelson said. “[They would] eliminate the downwind rulings on air pollution… The results are that extractive industries maximize their profits to an even greater degree.”

Via noted that European countries are affected by Project 2025 as well: “The plan is being used everywhere. In Europe, you’re seeing LGBTQ rights being challenged in court under the heading of religious freedom. Latin America is traditionally Catholic, but in the next 10 years it will be majority-evangelical. They do the same as Catholic churches do: provide community and services.”

The Electronic Intifada reports: “Aid to Gaza suspended after Israel murders World Central Kitchen workers.” See recent round up of this and other news at the group’s YouTube channel.

The group Insecurity Insight recently released a report titled: “A Disturbing Trend: Over 1,000 Attacks on Health Care in the oPt [Occupied Palestinian Territories] since 07 October 2023,” which marked “the grim milestone of over 1,000 recorded attacks on health care in the occupied Palestinian territories (oPt) … This equates to approximately five attacks per day with the vast majority of incidents perpetrated by Israeli Defence Forces (IDF).”

Specifically, the group documents:

1,014 attacks on health care
328 incidents where health facilities were damaged
458 health workers killed
311 health workers arrested

The group reports: “In the Gaza Strip where 785 incidents were reported, most involved airstrikes damaging or destroying hospitals and clinics and killing health workers. The IDF’s unrelenting aerial attack on the strip has had a catastrophic and far-reaching impact on the population and the health care system. Only 12 out of 36 hospitals are still functioning at a limited capacity whilst ambulance teams continuously face obstructions in reaching injured and dead civilians trapped under the rubble due indiscriminate bombings which have devastated civilian infrastructure. This direct and indirect use of explosive weapon use in populated areas has also caused massive destruction in almost all of the strip’s refugee camps and destroyed bakeries, agricultural land and greenhouses which, along with an ongoing Israeli blockade of food, water, fuel, and essential medicines and supplies, has contributed towards an imminent risk of famine in Gaza.

“In the West Bank where 175 incidents were recorded, over a third occurred inside refugee camps where security operations have increased since 07 October. During these operations, Israeli forces surrounded hospitals nearby camps and obstructed ambulance crews from assisting injured civilians, leading to some patients bleeding to death. Patients have been detained from ambulances and health workers arrested and assaulted at military checkpoints or whilst attempting to reach patients.” See a recent incident brief from the group [PDF].

For interviews, contact Tim Bishop at tim.bishop@insecurityinsight.org.

Also, see prior IPA news release from February: “Doctors Without Borders: Israel Is Attacking Our Convoys.”

The Guardian reports: “‘Not a normal war’: doctors say children have been targeted by Israeli snipers in Gaza.”

DAVE DeCAMP, davedecamp@protonmail.com, @DecampDave
DeCamp is news editor of Antiwar.com and host of “Antiwar News with Dave DeCamp” — a daily summary of developments.

Listen to his latest “Israel Bombed Foreign Aid Workers 3 Times, NATO Chief Floats $100 Billion Fund for Ukraine, and More” (also on YouTube and X.)

His piece “Israel Bombed Foreign Aid Workers Three Times Until They Were All Killed” reports: “Israel launched three separate drone strikes on an aid convoy in its attack that killed seven World Central Kitchen aid workers, Haaretz reported on Tuesday.

“One Israeli drone fired three missiles at three cars that were clearly marked with the WCK’s logos and were traveling on roads preapproved by the Israeli military. After the first car was hit, wounded survivors were picked up by a second car. After that car was hit, they went into the third car. Then, the Israeli drone finished the job. …”

DeCamp, the father of a seven-month-old and a two-year-old also just wrote the piece “Israeli Siege Causes Sharp Rise in Newborn Baby Deaths in Gaza.”

[See recent pieces by Sam Husseini: “By Way of Deception: State Dept. Pretending It Recognizes the Geneva Conventions” and “Creation of ‘Kill Zones’ and What ‘Occupied Territory’ Means.”]

In “Khamenei Vows Israel Will Be ‘Punished’ for Bombing Iran’s Syria Consulate,” DeCamp writes: “Israel’s bombing of a diplomatic facility marks a huge escalation in its attacks on Iranians in the region. Since October 7, Israel has significantly ramped up its airstrikes in Syria and has killed several members of the IRGC, Zahedi being the most senior. …

“Israel appears to be trying to provoke a major regional war in hopes that the U.S. would get directly involved. US officials have acknowledged to the media that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu might view a full-blown war in Lebanon as key to his political survival. A regional war would also take attention and scrutiny away from Israel’s genocidal campaign in Gaza.”

DeCamp’s other recent pieces include “Mitch McConnell Says He’ll Stay in the Senate To Fight the ‘Isolationist Movement’” and “Zelensky Signs Law Lowering Conscription Age to 25.”

The Cradle reports in “Israel presents plan to shutter UNRWA in defiance of ICJ order” that: “Israel has put forth a proposal to the UN for the dismantlement of its relief agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, in exchange for permitting more humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip.”

Doctors Without Borders released a statement: “Israeli forces leave Al-Shifa Hospital in ruins.” See from Democracy Now: “‘Genocidal Machine’: Dr. Ghassan Abu-Sittah on Israel’s Destruction of Gaza’s Hospitals.”

Al Jazeera reports: “U.S.-based aid group World Central Kitchen confirms seven staff members were killed in a ‘targeted attack‘ by the Israeli military and called on it to stop ‘this indiscriminate killing’ in Gaza. Those killed were from Palestine, Australia, Poland, the UK, and a U.S.-Canada citizen.” Al Jazeera also reports: “Japan to resume funding to UNRWA, following Sweden, Finland and Canada.” Meanwhile, see from Common Dreams: “‘Rogue, Authoritarian State’: Netanyahu Vows to Ban Al Jazeera Under New Law.”

Biden recently signed a spending bill which halts funding for UNRWA, the main relief organization in Gaza, through 2025. The Intercept reports the legislation “also contains a long-standing provision that would limit aid to the Palestinian Authority, which governs the occupied West Bank, if ‘the Palestinians initiate an International Criminal Court (ICC) judicially authorized investigation, or actively supports such an investigation, that subjects Israeli nationals to an investigation for alleged crimes against Palestinians.'”

The Washington Post reports: “The Biden administration in recent days quietly authorized the transfer of billions of dollars in bombs and fighter jets to Israel.”

CHRISTOPHER GUNNESS, cgunness@outlook.com, @MyanmarAProject
Gunness is a former spokesperson for UNRWA and was featured on the past IPA releases: “Report: Israel Tortured False Confessions Out of UNRWA Staff” and “UK Channel 4 Finds Israeli Documents ‘Provide No Evidence’ in Charges Against UNRWA.“

The Wisconsin primary is Tuesday. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports: “What the ‘uninstructed’ movement means for Wisconsin voters, Biden’s chances.”

[Common Dreams reports Monday: “Israeli Assault Turned Gaza’s al-Shifa Hospital Into ‘Mass Graveyard’” and on reporting by the Israeli media on the Israeli military creating “Kill Zones” in Gaza.”]

HALAH AHMAD, press@listentowisconsin.com, @listentowi
Ahmad is a spokesperson with Listen to Wisconsin, the group driving the state’s “Uninstructed” campaign. She notes that a majority in the U.S. are opposed to Israel’s attack on Gaza. Gallup recently found: “Americans now oppose the campaign by a solid margin.”

In These Times magazine reports in: “‘This Is a Movement of Hope’: Wisconsin’s Uninstructed Campaign Has Momentum” that organizers with the campaign say the primary will send President Joe Biden an “unequivocal message from the Midwest” that “if he wants to beat Trump, he must act immediately to end the genocide in Gaza. … Wisconsin may be the most pivotal swing state in the country, and Biden only beat Trump by the narrowest of margins there in 2020 – a little more than 20,000 votes, or just over 0.6 percent. And according to some recent polls, the incumbent is currently trailing (by anywhere from 2 percent to 6 percent) as he is losing support from voters – including younger voters – who care about the mass killings.”

State Representative Francesa Hong drafted a letter signed by numerous lawmakers in Wisconsin, stating, “We have an undeniable responsibility to stand with the Palestinian people in loving solidarity and demand an end to military aid to Israel and ensure the taxpayers are no longer complicit in a genocide that is funded by our government.”

A new report examines the presence of and connections between far-right hate and extremist groups in Brazil. 

WENDY VIA; wendy@globalextremism.org 
     Via is a president and cofounder of the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism (GPAHE). 

Via told the Institute for Public Accuracy: GPAHE’s country reports “connect the dots between far-right extremists in the U.S. and in other countries. They span the spectrum––from neo-Nazis to powerful, anti-LGBTQ think tanks. We can almost always find a transnational connection. Sometimes these connections run from violent, racist groups to the coat-and-tie policy people. That is true in Brazil as well.”

Far-right groups in Brazil are especially connected to the U.S. and to Portugal. “There is quite a bit of connection to Portugal,” Via said, “because Portuguese is not spoken worldwide. Portugal [is seen as] a ‘home country’ for Brazilians who identify as Europeans. It’s a white supremacy thing… Sometimes people have confusion about why there is white supremacy in Latin American countries. But Brazil was colonized by Portugal, [so some Brazilians] consider themselves of European descent. It’s about identification. Some [people] don’t consider themselves to be the descendents of native populations in South America. They consider themselves white Europeans. And they are accepted by white supremacists in the U.S. 

“When it comes to the far-right extremist hate groups, like the Hammerskins or the Proud Boys and others, they all come from the U.S. Some of them have been around for a long time and they get inspiration from one another. The internet has made it easy for these ideologies to spread. For folks in different countries looking for some solution or a place to put their angst and anger, they can do it by organizing online and in real life… You can see [the connections] if you know who to look for and where to look. This is just what is available publicly. These groups all have private chat rooms and forums. It’s harder to get in there, but that’s where plans are made or shared… We have seen a number of violent incidents in Brazil. The number is remarkable, particularly looking at the number of young people who [have] committed these acts of violence. 

“The rise of anti-LGBTQ think tanks and resource groups [can be seen] in every country. They’re all connected and they’re all connected to groups in the U.S. [Some are] focused on restricting and rolling back rights for LGTBQ folks, women, and people of color. 

“Neo-Nazi symbols are banned [in Brazil] but they’re everywhere. [Brazil] seems to emulate the U.S. a little bit more [than other countries]. They have Proud Boy clubhouses that replicate some of the U.S. activity… It’s shocking to see the use of the swastika so openly. That might seem simplistic, but it is shocking. [The swastika is] outlawed in so many countries and is such an anathema to so many countries. We are seeing it more and more.

“Lula has been very strong on far-right extremism and defines it the way we see it––as a spectrum. They have done some work to get legislation to address [extremism] on the internet, and there are some initiatives in place. But it may be too soon to say that it has made a difference yet. Those folks who rejected Lula the first time around, or who sprung up during Bolsonaro[‘s presidency], have yet to be diminished at this point. If Lula passes good economic policies and makes society run well, we will see [some of this extremism] drift away.” 

Via noted the presence of one Brazilian movement known as the Integralist movement. “It’s not a group, but more of a way of thinking.” This movement grew out of mid-20th century Brazilians who wanted to replicate Mussolini’s approach in Italy at the time. “There was a ton of racism in Mussolini’s regime; Brazilians didn’t want to be blatantly racist, so they eschewed that part of it but took on the materialistic, corporate, typical fascist approach. They went out of favor over the years but there’s been a bit of a resurgence. The [movement supports] a strong government that will manage the economy and do things based on religious ideology. Their open bigotry is against LGBTQ folks, particularly trans people, and some antisemitism.”