Homeland Security News

Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned Wednesday that the world is facing “an unprecedented threat from intolerance, violent extremism and terrorism” that affects every country, exacerbating conflicts and destabilizing entire regions.

The U.N. chief told a Security Council ministerial meeting on the sidelines of the annual gathering of world leaders that “the new frontier is cyber-terrorism — the use of social media and the dark web to coordinate attacks, spread propaganda and recruit new followers.”

He stressed that the response to the unprecedented terrorist threat “must complement security measures with prevention efforts that identify and address root causes, while always respecting human rights.”

Read more: Time

The bowl-shaped haircut worn by the white supremacist who killed nine black worshipers in Charleston, S.C., stands among the most disturbing and distinctive images that extremists have shared online. Others include letters drawn from the ancient runic alphabet — a particular favorite among neo-Nazis — or slogans like “Diversity=White genocide.”

They are among the many symbols, slogans and memes that white supremacists are deploying as propaganda and which are drawing more scrutiny amid a broader effort to curtail extremist violence in the United States.

On Thursday, the Anti-Defamation League is adding 36 entries to its longstanding online catalog of extremist symbols, many of which are built around racist stereotypes that have been spread about African Americans and Jews.

Read more: New York Times

Jihadis aligned to Islamic State have killed one of six aid workers abducted in July in northeast Nigeria, charity group Action Against Hunger said Wednesday.

The six Nigerian aid workers — one woman and five men — were seized by jihadis during an ambush on their convoy close to the border with Niger.

“The armed group holding captive an employee of Action Against Hunger (ACF), two drivers and three health ministry personnel, have executed a hostage,” the Paris-based organization said in a statement.

Read more: The Japan Times

Malaysia has arrested 15 people, mostly foreigners from neighboring Indonesia, on suspicion of having links with the Islamic State militant group, police said on Thursday.

Malaysia has been on high alert since January 2016, when gunmen allied with Islamic State carried out a series of attacks in Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia.

The suspects were arrested in several raids across the country between July and September, Malaysia’s police counter-terrorism chief Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay said in a statement.

Read more: Reuters

A 28-year-old Missouri man charged with plotting a terrorist attack on buses, trains and a train station in Kansas City has pleaded guilty to one count.

KRCG reports Robert Lorenzo Hester, of Columbia, entered his plea Monday to providing material support or resources to terrorists.

Federal prosecutors charged Hester in February 2017 after a monthslong FBI investigation.

An affidavit released at the time said undercover agents posing as Islamic State sympathizers met with Hester several times. At their request, he provided materials such as nails and duct tape that he believed would be used to create bombs.

Read more: KSHB (Kansas City)