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Atomwaffen Division AI simulator
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Atomwaffen Division AI simulator
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Atomwaffen Division
The Atomwaffen Division (Atomwaffen meaning "atomic weapons" in German), also known as the National Socialist Resistance Front, was an international far-right extremist and neo-Nazi terrorist network. Formed in 2015 and based in the Southern United States, it expanded across the United States and several other countries worldwide. Atomwaffen was described as "one of the most violent neo-Nazi movements in the 21st century".
It was listed as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), and it was also designated as a terrorist group by multiple governments, including the United Kingdom and Canada. Members of the Atomwaffen Division have been held responsible for a number of murders, bombings, planned terrorist attacks, and other criminal actions.
In 2015, the group's creation was announced by founding member Brandon Russell, on the Neo-fascist and Neo-Nazi web forum IronMarch.org, which, prior to its shutdown in 2017, had been linked to several acts of Neo-Nazi terrorism and violent militant groups such as the Nordic Resistance Movement, National Action, CasaPound, and Golden Dawn. In its initial posts, the group described itself as a "very fanatical, ideological band of comrades who do both activism and militant training. Hand to hand, arms training, and various other forms of training. As for activism, we spread awareness in the real world through unconventional means."
As of 2017, the group's membership was mostly young, and it also recruited new members on university campuses. Its campus recruitment poster campaigns urged students to "Join Your Local Nazis!" and say "The Nazis Are Coming!". It posted recruiting posters at the University of Chicago, the University of Central Florida, the Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, and Boston University. Atomwaffen Division had recruited several veterans and current members of the U.S. Armed Forces who trained the organization's members in the use of firearms and military tactics. A U.S. Navy officer was expelled for allegedly recruiting 12 members for the group and four affiliated US Marines were charged with trafficking and manufacturing firearms for the group. Atomwaffen members also sought to train with the Azov Battalion and Russian Imperial Movement. In October 2020, Ukraine deported two Atomwaffen members who tried to join Azov for inciting murders and terrorism.
As of 2018, Atomwaffen had ties to various affiliated neo-Nazi groups and the fascist Satanist Order of Nine Angles (O9A), an organization which advocates rape and human sacrifice.
During an investigation in 2018, ProPublica obtained 250,000 encrypted chat logs written by members of the group. It was estimated in early 2018, that Atomwaffen had 80 members, while ProPublica estimated as many as 100. According to International Centre for Counter-Terrorism the group has a large number of "initiates" in addition to 60 to 80 full members.
On March 14, 2020, American neo-Nazi James Mason claimed that the Atomwaffen Division had disbanded. However, the group was believed to be on the cusp of being designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the State Department, and the Anti-Defamation League stated that "the move is designed to give members breathing room rather than actually end their militant activities". An intelligence brief distributed by federal law enforcement warned that Atomwaffen and its branches had discussed taking advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic. On March 25, 2020, a Missouri man affiliated with Atomwaffen allegedly planned to destroy a hospital treating coronavirus victims with a car bomb and died in a shootout with the FBI.
According to counter-terrorism experts, the group remained active and it continued to established affiliates in Europe. On May 31, 2020, it was announced that a new Atomwaffen cell had been uncovered in Russia. Local security services had also just previously uncovered a cell in Switzerland, confirming the suspicions of the German officials that Switzerland served as the linchpin of Atomwaffen's German operation, allowing them to evade law enforcement. European security officials have asked their U.S. counterparts for assistance in combating these cells and urged designating them as terrorist organizations.
Atomwaffen Division
The Atomwaffen Division (Atomwaffen meaning "atomic weapons" in German), also known as the National Socialist Resistance Front, was an international far-right extremist and neo-Nazi terrorist network. Formed in 2015 and based in the Southern United States, it expanded across the United States and several other countries worldwide. Atomwaffen was described as "one of the most violent neo-Nazi movements in the 21st century".
It was listed as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), and it was also designated as a terrorist group by multiple governments, including the United Kingdom and Canada. Members of the Atomwaffen Division have been held responsible for a number of murders, bombings, planned terrorist attacks, and other criminal actions.
In 2015, the group's creation was announced by founding member Brandon Russell, on the Neo-fascist and Neo-Nazi web forum IronMarch.org, which, prior to its shutdown in 2017, had been linked to several acts of Neo-Nazi terrorism and violent militant groups such as the Nordic Resistance Movement, National Action, CasaPound, and Golden Dawn. In its initial posts, the group described itself as a "very fanatical, ideological band of comrades who do both activism and militant training. Hand to hand, arms training, and various other forms of training. As for activism, we spread awareness in the real world through unconventional means."
As of 2017, the group's membership was mostly young, and it also recruited new members on university campuses. Its campus recruitment poster campaigns urged students to "Join Your Local Nazis!" and say "The Nazis Are Coming!". It posted recruiting posters at the University of Chicago, the University of Central Florida, the Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, and Boston University. Atomwaffen Division had recruited several veterans and current members of the U.S. Armed Forces who trained the organization's members in the use of firearms and military tactics. A U.S. Navy officer was expelled for allegedly recruiting 12 members for the group and four affiliated US Marines were charged with trafficking and manufacturing firearms for the group. Atomwaffen members also sought to train with the Azov Battalion and Russian Imperial Movement. In October 2020, Ukraine deported two Atomwaffen members who tried to join Azov for inciting murders and terrorism.
As of 2018, Atomwaffen had ties to various affiliated neo-Nazi groups and the fascist Satanist Order of Nine Angles (O9A), an organization which advocates rape and human sacrifice.
During an investigation in 2018, ProPublica obtained 250,000 encrypted chat logs written by members of the group. It was estimated in early 2018, that Atomwaffen had 80 members, while ProPublica estimated as many as 100. According to International Centre for Counter-Terrorism the group has a large number of "initiates" in addition to 60 to 80 full members.
On March 14, 2020, American neo-Nazi James Mason claimed that the Atomwaffen Division had disbanded. However, the group was believed to be on the cusp of being designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the State Department, and the Anti-Defamation League stated that "the move is designed to give members breathing room rather than actually end their militant activities". An intelligence brief distributed by federal law enforcement warned that Atomwaffen and its branches had discussed taking advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic. On March 25, 2020, a Missouri man affiliated with Atomwaffen allegedly planned to destroy a hospital treating coronavirus victims with a car bomb and died in a shootout with the FBI.
According to counter-terrorism experts, the group remained active and it continued to established affiliates in Europe. On May 31, 2020, it was announced that a new Atomwaffen cell had been uncovered in Russia. Local security services had also just previously uncovered a cell in Switzerland, confirming the suspicions of the German officials that Switzerland served as the linchpin of Atomwaffen's German operation, allowing them to evade law enforcement. European security officials have asked their U.S. counterparts for assistance in combating these cells and urged designating them as terrorist organizations.