US will hold summit against antifa, says agency

The Trump administration is organizing an international summit focused on combating the left-wing Antifa movement and other groups, three sources familiar with the matter said. The effort highlights the shift in the U.S. government’s counterterrorism priorities over the past year. The conference, tentatively planned for June or July, will bring together officials from several nations to discuss strategies to combat Antifa and encourage the sharing of intelligence, said the sources, who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the press. US President Donald Trump has portrayed Antifa as a serious threat to the US. Counterterrorism experts argue that the group does not exist as an organized entity, although people claiming affinity with Antifa have been involved in armed attacks in the US. Among the officials organizing the event is Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Thomas DiNanno, two of the sources said. In response to requests for comment, spokespeople for the White House and State Department described the anti-fascist movement as a major security concern for the Trump administration. “Anarchists, Marxists and violent extremists in the anti-fascist movement have waged a campaign of terror in the United States and throughout the Western world for decades, carrying out bombings, beatings, shootings and riots in service of their extremist agenda,” said Tommy Pigott, principal deputy spokesman for the State Department. The planned event has sparked concern among some current and former officials, who argue the summit would be a distraction at a time when the U.S. faces threats from Iranian-sponsored groups driven by war in the Middle East. “I’m skeptical that right now, with everything that’s going on, when we see the number of plans being hatched by Iran and Hezbollah, that there really is a compelling need to spend limited counterterrorism resources on the anti-fascist threat at this time,” said Michael Jacobson, who was director of strategy, plans and initiatives at the State Department’s Office of Counterterrorism until 2025. Now, he is a senior fellow at the think tank Washington Institute for the Near East Policy. A State Department official argued that the administration has taken “unprecedented steps to combat terrorism around the world,” including many actions against Hezbollah, Hamas, the Yemen-based Houthis and several drug cartels. Many details of the planned event were unclear, including which countries were invited and would participate. As of last week, formal invitations to the conference had not yet been sent out, two of the people said. The State Department official said no date for the summit had been set. It was also unclear whether the event would focus specifically on groups or individuals who identify with Antifa, or on left-wing groups in general. At times, senior government officials have used the term Antifa as public shorthand for left-wing extremism of all types. One source expected European governments to receive many of the invitations. In November, the Trump administration designated four left-wing entities in Germany, Italy and Greece as foreign terrorist organizations under U.S. law. Seven people allegedly linked to one such group, known as Antifa Ost, went on trial in Germany in November on charges including attempted murder. The source said administration officials expected to announce a global coalition to combat Antifa around the time of the planned conference.

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