Politics
U.S. designates Italian tech group as global terrorist over links to Antifa, Hamas, and IRGC
The State Department sanctioned Autistici/Inventati, accusing the collective of providing encrypted digital tools to far-left domestic networks and foreign militant organizations.
The short version
- The U.S. State Department has designated the Italy-based tech collective Autistici/Inventati (A/I Collective) as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist.
- Officials accuse the group of providing encrypted communications, hosting, and digital infrastructure used by foreign terrorist groups like Hamas and the IRGC, as well as domestic far-left networks.
- The sanctions freeze any U.S. assets held by the collective and prohibit American citizens and financial institutions from doing business with it.
Key facts
- The State Department designated Autistici/Inventati (A/I Collective) as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist for providing encrypted communications, web hosting, and other digital infrastructure to overseas terrorist groups and domestic far-left networks.[Fox News]
- Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced the terror action, stating that the collective screens its users for ideological alignment.[Fox News]
- A State Department memo claims the collective's services were used by overseas terrorist organizations, including Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).[Fox News]
- The memo alleges that domestic groups like Portland's Rose City Antifa used the collective's services to organize actions, such as urging supporters to target Customs and Border Protection helicopters with lasers.[Fox News]
- The militant abortion-rights group Jane's Revenge is also cited as having used A/I Collective tools to publish claims of responsibility for the May 2022 firebombing of a Wisconsin crisis pregnancy center.[Fox News]
- The sanctions bar Americans and U.S. financial institutions from doing business with the collective and freeze its assets under U.S. jurisdiction.[Fox News]