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U.S. NEWS Monday 21 october 2019

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Report: Synagogue massacre led to string of attack plots

By MICHAEL KUNZELMAN the deadly attacks in Pitts- present," the group's CEO,
Associated Press burgh and on two mosques Jonathan Greenblatt, said
COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) — in Christchurch, New Zea- in a statement.
At least 12 white suprema- land, where a gunman The ADL said it counted at
cists have been arrested killed 51 people in March. least 30 additional incidents
on allegations of plotting, The ADL also counted in which people with an
threatening or carrying out three additional 2019 cas- "unknown ideology" target-
anti-Semitic attacks in the es in which individuals were ed Jewish institutions with
U.S. since the massacre at arrested for targeting Jews acts of arson, vandalism or
a Pittsburgh synagogue but weren't deemed to be propaganda distribution
nearly one year ago, a white supremacists. Two that the group deemed to In this Oct. 28, 2018, file photo a Pittsburgh Police officer walks
Jewish civil rights group re- were motivated by Islamist be anti-Semitic or "general- past the Tree of Life synagogue and a memorial of flowers and
ported Sunday. extremist ideology, the or- ly hateful," but not explicitly stars in Pittsburgh, in remembrance of those killed and injured
The Anti-Defamation ganization said. white supremacist. when a shooter opened fire during services at the synagogue.
League also counted at The ADL said its Center on "These incidents include Associated Press
least 50 incidents in which Extremism provided "criti- the shooting of an elderly York and Massachusetts, in Georgia and New Jersey,
white supremacists are ac- cal intelligence" to law en- man outside a synagogue Molotov cocktails thrown at as well as a wide range of
cused of targeting Jewish forcement in at least three in Miami, fires set at multiple synagogue windows in Chi- anti-Semitic graffiti," an ADL
institutions' property since a of the 12 cases it counted. Jewish institutions in New cago, damaged menorahs report said.q
gunman killed 11 worship- Last December, authorities
pers at the Tree of Life syn- in Monroe, Washington, ar-
agogue on Oct. 27, 2018. rested a white supremacist
Those incidents include 12 after the ADL notified law
cases of vandalism involv- enforcement about sus-
ing white supremacist sym- picions he threatened on
bols and 35 cases in which Facebook to kill Jews in a
white supremacist propa- synagogue. The ADL said
ganda was distributed. it also helped authorities in
The ADL said its nationwide Lehighton, Pennsylvania,
count of anti-Semitic inci- identify a white suprem-
dents remains near record acist accused of using
levels. It has counted 780 aliases to post threatening
anti-Semitic incidents in messages, including a digi-
the first six months of 2019, tal image of himself point-
compared to 785 incidents ing an AR-15 rifle at a group
during the same period in of praying Jewish men.
2018. In August, an FBI-led anti-
The ADL's tally of 12 ar- terrorism task force ar-
rests for white supremacist rested a Las Vegas man
plots, threats and attacks accused of plotting to
against Jewish institutions firebomb a synagogue or
includes the April 2019 other targets, including a
capture of John T. Earnest, bar catering to LGTBQ cus-
who is charged with killing tomers and the ADL's Las
one person and wounding Vegas office. The ADL said
three others in a shooting it warned law enforcement
at a synagogue in Poway, officials about the man's
California. The group said online threats.
many of the cases it count- "We cannot and will not
ed, including the Poway rest easy knowing the
shooting, were inspired by threat posed by white su-
previous white supremist premacists and other ex-
attacks. In online posts, Ear- tremists against the Jewish
nest said he was inspired by community is clear and