New ‘study’ purports to prove that ‘far-right terrorism’ is ‘bigger threat to West than Islamic State’

The Institute of Economics and Peace says that its “research is used extensively by governments, academic institutions, think tanks, non‑governmental organisations and by intergovernmental institutions such as the OECD, The Commonwealth Secretariat, the World Bank and the United Nations.” Just so you know where it’s coming from.

In any case, note the sleight of hand here. “Far-right terrorism” is compared with the Islamic State. The Islamic State is one of a great many jihad organizations worldwide, yet it alone is being compared with what is presumably several different organizations lumped together as “far-right terrorism.” The threat of al-Qaeda and other jihad groups would make the jihad threat substantially greater, but that is not the objective of this study.

Also, it would be important to know how the Institute of Economics and Peace evaluated the available data in light of the recent revelation that a US terror database classifies 9/11 jihadis as ‘White/Caucasian non-Hispanic,’ and 9/11 victims as killed by whites. Is that how it arrived at the conclusion that “far-right terrorism” was actually a larger threat than the Islamic State?

Note also that Antifa and Black Lives Matter have rioted violently in Portland, Seattle, Kenosha, Wisconsin, New York City, Atlanta, Philadelphia, and elsewhere, and “far-Left terrorism” somehow never gets noticed, while the handful of actual “far-right terrorists” that do exist haven’t been burning down cities and vowing revolution. That also reveals the agenda of this “study.”

“Far-right terrorism bigger threat to West than Islamic State – study,” by Alexandra Brzozowski, Euractiv.com, November 25, 2020:

Global deaths from terrorism have fallen for a fifth consecutive year, according to the 2020 Global Terrorism Index, but far-right attacks have increased by 250% globally, to a level not seen in the last 50 years, with the pandemic likely to exacerbate the trend.

Deaths from terrorism fell by 15% around the world last year to under 14,000, a 59% decrease since 2014, according to the report issued by the Institute of Economics and Peace (IEP) on Wednesday (25 November).

It summarises global trends in terrorism and ranks countries in order of those most affected in terms of both casualties and economic costs in 2019.

The MENA region (Middle East and North Africa) recorded the largest regional improvement in terrorism for the second consecutive year, recording the lowest number of deaths since 2003, with this year’s pandemic likely to extend the trend.

The decrease was partly due to the collapse of Islamic State territories and the subsequent de-escalation of conflicts in the Middle East.

However, the number of far-right terrorist acts has risen by 250% since 2014. When it comes to fatalities, the increase was even more than 700% within five years, with 89 people killed in 2019.

There are now more right-wing attacks than at any other time in the past 50 years, with 13 far-right terrorist attacks that had each killed more than 10 people, compared to 24 Islamist attacks, and three linked to other ideologies, the report found.

“As a new decade begins, we see new terrorist threats. The rise in right-wing extremism in the West and the deterioration in the Sahel are prime examples,” said the Institute’s Executive Director Steve Killelea.

“As we enter a new decade we are seeing new threats of terrorism emerge. The rise of the far-right in the West and the deteriorations in the Sahel are prime examples,” he said.

“Additionally, as seen in the recent attacks in France and Austria, many smaller groups sympathetic to ISIL philosophies are still active,” Killea added….