A Justice Department official on Tuesday announced the formation of a specialized unit to combat domestic terrorism, saying investigations into violent extremism have skyrocketed.
FBI …
A Justice Department official on Tuesday announced the formation of a specialized unit to combat domestic terrorism, saying investigations into violent extremism have skyrocketed. FBI investigations into domestic terrorism cases have more than doubled since March of 2020, and the new unit will augment the department’s existing approach to prosecuting those crimes, said Assistant Attorney General Mathew Olsen, who leads the department’s National Security Division. “This group of dedicated attorneys will focus on the domestic terrorism threat, helping to ensure these cases are handled properly and effectively coordinated across the Department of Justice and across the country,” he said at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing. Justice officials said the new focus on domestic terrorism does not target groups based on their political leanings, but they identified one of the biggest threats coming from citizen militias. Tuesday’s hearing was part of a steady drumbeat in Washington raising concerns of a growing domestic terrorism threat in the wake of the Jan.6,2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol. “The insurrection should be a wake-up call,” said Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Richard J. Durbin, Illinois Democrat. “A reminder that America is still confronted with the age-old menace that’s taken on a new life in the twenty-first century: terror from white supremacists, militia members and other extremists who use violence to further their twisted agenda.
