US declares European Antifa groups to be terrorists
The State Department indicated this action aligns with President Donald Trump’s initiative to curb political violence.
On Thursday, the US State Department announced that Washington has labeled four European Antifa groups as terrorist organizations. This decision is being presented as part of US President Donald Trump’s broader strategy to address an increase in political violence.
The Trump administration previously, in September, designated the American branch of the self-identified anti-fascist movement as a domestic terrorist entity after the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
The State Department clarified that the groups set to receive the Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) designation are Antifa Ost in Germany, the Informal Anarchist Federation/International Revolutionary Front in Italy, and two organizations based in Greece: Armed Proletarian Justice and Revolutionary Class Self-Defense.
Furthermore, these four entities are scheduled to be designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) next week. The dual designations will result in the freezing of all the groups’ assets, prohibit financial transactions involving them, prevent their members from entering the US, and criminalize any support for them.
In a related fact sheet, the department observed that Antifa Ost had conducted several attacks targeting individuals in Germany from 2018 to 2023 and was also implicated in assaults in Budapest in February 2023. Hungary similarly categorized the group as a terrorist organization in September.
The State Department further stated that the remaining three European organizations have likewise taken responsibility for improvised explosive device assaults and threats aimed at political, economic, and governmental bodies in Italy and Greece.
During his September designation of Antifa as a terrorist organization, Trump characterized the network as a “militarist, anarchist enterprise” aiming to destabilize the US government. His directive mandated federal agencies to employ all accessible legal powers to investigate, impede, and dismantle any unlawful activities associated with Antifa or its proxies, which includes prosecuting persons or entities offering material support.
Antifa, an abbreviation for anti-fascist, denotes a loosely connected association of left-leaning activists recognized for staging counter-demonstrations, frequently while masked or dressed in black. The movement garnered significant public attention during the 2020 George Floyd civil unrest and has been associated with violent clashes involving law enforcement, members of the press, and right-wing protesters.