Latest news with #anti-Semitism
The Advertiser
2 days ago
- Politics
- The Advertiser
Online hate group listed as a terrorist organisation
The online far-right extremist network Terrorgram has been listed as a terrorist organisation, with members facing decades in jail if convicted of an offence. The federal government says the group provides instructions on how to conduct terrorist attacks and has been responsible for inspiring terror events in the United States, Europe and Asia. The listing means Australians who join, recruit or fund the network will face prison terms of up to 25 years. Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said the listing was different to previous ones because of the way Terrorgram operated. "If people imagine a big chat group dedicated to hatred and violence," he told ABC Radio on Friday. "It's a situation where the members won't necessarily know each other. They won't necessarily know the people who they're recruiting." Mr Burke said the group was a direct threat to the safety of Australians and had previously made threats. The group encouraged not just the sharing of hatred but the sharing of acts of violence and how-to guides to enable people to commit acts of violence, he said. "You never stop chasing these characters down ... this listing won't be the last thing we have to do against far-right supremacist groups." Mr Burke said the nature of terrorist threats kept changing, particularly involving young males being radicalised online around the principle of violence. "These sorts of groups try to tell a whole lot of Australians they're not welcome here," he said. "They try to tell people they intend for them not be safe. "We're saying 'no, no, no, it's the hatred and the bigotry and the violence that isn't welcome here'." Mr Burke said the government was sending the message anyone who wanted to engage in Terrorgram faced serious criminal penalties. In February, the neo-Nazi and white supremacist group was slapped with counter-terrorism financing sanctions as part of the federal government's crackdown on anti-Semitism. Its channels share fascist content on how members can carry out racially-motivated violence against minority groups, police, public figures, political figures and journalists. Announcing the financing sanctions, Foreign Minister Penny Wong said they made it a criminal offence to use or deal with the assets of, or make assets available to, Terrorgram. Penalties include up to 10 years in prison and heavy fines. It was the first time Australia had imposed counter-terrorism financing sanctions on an entirely online entity, Senator Wong said. Terrorgram has operated on the Russian-founded social media site Telegram, aiming to inspire lone-wolf acts of terror. In January, the US State Department branded Terrorgram a terrorist group. The online far-right extremist network Terrorgram has been listed as a terrorist organisation, with members facing decades in jail if convicted of an offence. The federal government says the group provides instructions on how to conduct terrorist attacks and has been responsible for inspiring terror events in the United States, Europe and Asia. The listing means Australians who join, recruit or fund the network will face prison terms of up to 25 years. Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said the listing was different to previous ones because of the way Terrorgram operated. "If people imagine a big chat group dedicated to hatred and violence," he told ABC Radio on Friday. "It's a situation where the members won't necessarily know each other. They won't necessarily know the people who they're recruiting." Mr Burke said the group was a direct threat to the safety of Australians and had previously made threats. The group encouraged not just the sharing of hatred but the sharing of acts of violence and how-to guides to enable people to commit acts of violence, he said. "You never stop chasing these characters down ... this listing won't be the last thing we have to do against far-right supremacist groups." Mr Burke said the nature of terrorist threats kept changing, particularly involving young males being radicalised online around the principle of violence. "These sorts of groups try to tell a whole lot of Australians they're not welcome here," he said. "They try to tell people they intend for them not be safe. "We're saying 'no, no, no, it's the hatred and the bigotry and the violence that isn't welcome here'." Mr Burke said the government was sending the message anyone who wanted to engage in Terrorgram faced serious criminal penalties. In February, the neo-Nazi and white supremacist group was slapped with counter-terrorism financing sanctions as part of the federal government's crackdown on anti-Semitism. Its channels share fascist content on how members can carry out racially-motivated violence against minority groups, police, public figures, political figures and journalists. Announcing the financing sanctions, Foreign Minister Penny Wong said they made it a criminal offence to use or deal with the assets of, or make assets available to, Terrorgram. Penalties include up to 10 years in prison and heavy fines. It was the first time Australia had imposed counter-terrorism financing sanctions on an entirely online entity, Senator Wong said. Terrorgram has operated on the Russian-founded social media site Telegram, aiming to inspire lone-wolf acts of terror. In January, the US State Department branded Terrorgram a terrorist group. The online far-right extremist network Terrorgram has been listed as a terrorist organisation, with members facing decades in jail if convicted of an offence. The federal government says the group provides instructions on how to conduct terrorist attacks and has been responsible for inspiring terror events in the United States, Europe and Asia. The listing means Australians who join, recruit or fund the network will face prison terms of up to 25 years. Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said the listing was different to previous ones because of the way Terrorgram operated. "If people imagine a big chat group dedicated to hatred and violence," he told ABC Radio on Friday. "It's a situation where the members won't necessarily know each other. They won't necessarily know the people who they're recruiting." Mr Burke said the group was a direct threat to the safety of Australians and had previously made threats. The group encouraged not just the sharing of hatred but the sharing of acts of violence and how-to guides to enable people to commit acts of violence, he said. "You never stop chasing these characters down ... this listing won't be the last thing we have to do against far-right supremacist groups." Mr Burke said the nature of terrorist threats kept changing, particularly involving young males being radicalised online around the principle of violence. "These sorts of groups try to tell a whole lot of Australians they're not welcome here," he said. "They try to tell people they intend for them not be safe. "We're saying 'no, no, no, it's the hatred and the bigotry and the violence that isn't welcome here'." Mr Burke said the government was sending the message anyone who wanted to engage in Terrorgram faced serious criminal penalties. In February, the neo-Nazi and white supremacist group was slapped with counter-terrorism financing sanctions as part of the federal government's crackdown on anti-Semitism. Its channels share fascist content on how members can carry out racially-motivated violence against minority groups, police, public figures, political figures and journalists. Announcing the financing sanctions, Foreign Minister Penny Wong said they made it a criminal offence to use or deal with the assets of, or make assets available to, Terrorgram. Penalties include up to 10 years in prison and heavy fines. It was the first time Australia had imposed counter-terrorism financing sanctions on an entirely online entity, Senator Wong said. Terrorgram has operated on the Russian-founded social media site Telegram, aiming to inspire lone-wolf acts of terror. In January, the US State Department branded Terrorgram a terrorist group. The online far-right extremist network Terrorgram has been listed as a terrorist organisation, with members facing decades in jail if convicted of an offence. The federal government says the group provides instructions on how to conduct terrorist attacks and has been responsible for inspiring terror events in the United States, Europe and Asia. The listing means Australians who join, recruit or fund the network will face prison terms of up to 25 years. Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said the listing was different to previous ones because of the way Terrorgram operated. "If people imagine a big chat group dedicated to hatred and violence," he told ABC Radio on Friday. "It's a situation where the members won't necessarily know each other. They won't necessarily know the people who they're recruiting." Mr Burke said the group was a direct threat to the safety of Australians and had previously made threats. The group encouraged not just the sharing of hatred but the sharing of acts of violence and how-to guides to enable people to commit acts of violence, he said. "You never stop chasing these characters down ... this listing won't be the last thing we have to do against far-right supremacist groups." Mr Burke said the nature of terrorist threats kept changing, particularly involving young males being radicalised online around the principle of violence. "These sorts of groups try to tell a whole lot of Australians they're not welcome here," he said. "They try to tell people they intend for them not be safe. "We're saying 'no, no, no, it's the hatred and the bigotry and the violence that isn't welcome here'." Mr Burke said the government was sending the message anyone who wanted to engage in Terrorgram faced serious criminal penalties. In February, the neo-Nazi and white supremacist group was slapped with counter-terrorism financing sanctions as part of the federal government's crackdown on anti-Semitism. Its channels share fascist content on how members can carry out racially-motivated violence against minority groups, police, public figures, political figures and journalists. Announcing the financing sanctions, Foreign Minister Penny Wong said they made it a criminal offence to use or deal with the assets of, or make assets available to, Terrorgram. Penalties include up to 10 years in prison and heavy fines. It was the first time Australia had imposed counter-terrorism financing sanctions on an entirely online entity, Senator Wong said. Terrorgram has operated on the Russian-founded social media site Telegram, aiming to inspire lone-wolf acts of terror. In January, the US State Department branded Terrorgram a terrorist group.
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Federal jduge blocks Trump administration Harvard student ban
June 6 (UPI) -- A federal judge temporarily paused President Donald Trump's ban on foreign nationals coming to study, teach, or do research at Harvard University, pending a hearing later in June. U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs' ruling Thursday night came after Harvard filed a suit in Boston alleging Trump's proclamation, issued a day earlier, was unlawful because it violated the First Amendment. Burroughs said she was granting Harvard's motion for a restraining order against the Homeland Security Department, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Justice Department, State Department and the Student and Exchange Visitor Program after accepting Harvard's claim that it would otherwise "sustain immediate and irreparable injury before there was an opportunity to hear from all parties." The motion was in a hastily amended complaint by Harvard after Trump on Wednesday suspended entry of all foreign nationals "who enter or attempt to enter the United States to begin attending Harvard," and directed Secretary of State Marco Rubio to consider cancelling the visas of foreigners already there. She said the court would reconvene on June 16 for a full hearing on whether Trump's proclamation is legal. Burroughs' order also extended through June 20 a temporary restraining order she issued May 23, preventing DHS from implementing a ban on Harvard sponsoring holders of F-1 and J-1 non-immigrant visas, something the university has been permitted to do for more than seven decades. The school's legal team argued Wednesday's proclamation was an effort to get around this restraining order. "The proclamation simply reflects the administration's effort to accomplish the very result that the Court sought to prevent. The Court should not stand for that," Harvard's legal counsel alleged in court filings. Harvard has maintained that the orders represent executive overreach, while Trump insists there is a national security risk posed by its foreign students. The Trump administration has demanded that Harvard water down its diversity, equality and inclusion policies in hiring and admissions, beef up enforcement of anti-Semitism measures on campus following anti-Gaza war protests and hand over the records of its international students. Trump's proclamation stated that the step was in the national interest because he believed Harvard's refusal to share "information that the federal government requires to safeguard national security and the American public" showed it was not suitable for foreign nationals. In April, Trump cancelled more than $2 billion in federal funding that the university receives and threatened to remove its tax-exemption status and ability to enroll overseas students. DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told The Hill that Harvard's lawsuit was a bid to "kneecap the President's constitutionally vested powers" to suspend entry to the country of persons whose presence was not in line with national interests. "It is a privilege, not a right, for universities to enroll foreign students and benefit from their higher tuition payments to help pad their multibillion-dollar endowments," McLaughlin said. "The Trump administration is committed to restoring common sense to our student visa system; no lawsuit, this or any other, is going to change that. We have the law, the facts, and common sense on our side."
UPI
06-06-2025
- Politics
- UPI
Federal jduge blocks Trump administration Harvard student ban
June 6 (UPI) -- A federal judge temporarily paused President Donald Trump's ban on foreign nationals coming to study, teach, or do research at Harvard University, pending a hearing later in June. U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs' ruling Thursday night came after Harvard filed a suit in Boston alleging Trump's proclamation, issued a day earlier, was unlawful because it violated the First Amendment. Burroughs said she was granting Harvard's motion for a restraining order against the Homeland Security Department, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Justice Department, State Department and the Student and Exchange Visitor Program after accepting Harvard's claim that it would otherwise "sustain immediate and irreparable injury before there was an opportunity to hear from all parties." The motion was in a hastily amended complaint by Harvard after Trump on Wednesday suspended entry of all foreign nationals "who enter or attempt to enter the United States to begin attending Harvard," and directed Secretary of State Marco Rubio to consider cancelling the visas of foreigners already there. She said the court would reconvene on June 16 for a full hearing on whether Trump's proclamation is legal. Burroughs' order also extended through June 20 a temporary restraining order she issued May 23, preventing DHS from implementing a ban on Harvard sponsoring holders of F-1 and J-1 non-immigrant visas, something the university has been permitted to do for more than seven decades. The school's legal team argued Wednesday's proclamation was an effort to get around this restraining order. "The proclamation simply reflects the administration's effort to accomplish the very result that the Court sought to prevent. The Court should not stand for that," Harvard's legal counsel alleged in court filings. Harvard has maintained that the orders represent executive overreach, while Trump insists there is a national security risk posed by its foreign students. The Trump administration has demanded that Harvard water down its diversity, equality and inclusion policies in hiring and admissions, beef up enforcement of anti-Semitism measures on campus following anti-Gaza war protests and hand over the records of its international students. Trump's proclamation stated that the step was in the national interest because he believed Harvard's refusal to share "information that the federal government requires to safeguard national security and the American public" showed it was not suitable for foreign nationals. In April, Trump cancelled more than $2 billion in federal funding that the university receives and threatened to remove its tax-exemption status and ability to enroll overseas students. DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told The Hill that Harvard's lawsuit was a bid to "kneecap the President's constitutionally vested powers" to suspend entry to the country of persons whose presence was not in line with national interests. "It is a privilege, not a right, for universities to enroll foreign students and benefit from their higher tuition payments to help pad their multibillion-dollar endowments," McLaughlin said. "The Trump administration is committed to restoring common sense to our student visa system; no lawsuit, this or any other, is going to change that. We have the law, the facts, and common sense on our side."
The Journal
06-06-2025
- Politics
- The Journal
US judge blocks Trump's latest ban on foreign students at Harvard
A US JUDGE has put a temporary stay on Donald Trump's latest effort to stop foreign students from enrolling at Harvard, as the US president's battle with one of the world's most prestigious universities intensified. A proclamation issued by the White House late Wednesday sought to bar most new international students at Harvard from entering the country, and said existing foreign enrollees risked having their visas terminated. 'Harvard's conduct has rendered it an unsuitable destination for foreign students and researchers,' the order said. Harvard quickly amended an existing complaint filed in federal court, saying: 'This is not the Administration's first attempt to sever Harvard from its international students.' '(It) is part of a concerted and escalating campaign of retaliation by the government in clear retribution for Harvard's exercising its First Amendment rights to reject the government's demands to control Harvard's governance, curriculum, and the 'ideology' of its faculty and students.' Advertisement US District Judge Allison Burroughs ruled the government cannot enforce Trump's proclamation. Harvard had showed, she said, that without a temporary restraining order, it risked sustaining 'immediate and irreparable injury before there is an opportunity to hear from all parties.' The same judge had already blocked Trump's earlier effort to bar international students from enrolling at the storied university. 'Government vendetta' The government already cut around $3.2 billion (€2.7 billion) of federal grants and contracts benefiting Harvard and pledged to exclude the Cambridge, Massachusetts, institution from any future federal funding. Harvard has been at the forefront of Trump's campaign against top universities after it defied his calls to submit to oversight of its curriculum, staffing, student recruitment and 'viewpoint diversity.' Trump has also singled out international students at Harvard, who accounted for 27% of total enrollment in the 2024-2025 academic year and are a major source of income. In its filing, Harvard acknowledged that Trump had the authority to bar an entire class of aliens if it was deemed to be in the public interest, but stressed that was not the case in this action. Related Reads Harvard University sues Trump administration to stop federal funding freeze Trump threatens to strip Harvard's tax-exempt status after freezing university's funding Harvard University hit with $2.2 billion funding freeze after rejecting Trump's demands 'The President's actions thus are not undertaken to protect the 'interests of the United States' but instead to pursue a government vendetta against Harvard,' it said. Since returning to office Trump has targeted elite US universities which he and his allies accuse of being hotbeds of anti-Semitism, liberal bias and 'woke' ideology. Trump's education secretary also threatened to strip Columbia University of its accreditation. The Republican has targeted the New York Ivy League institution for allegedly ignoring harassment of Jewish students, throwing all of its federal funding into doubt. Unlike Harvard, several top institutions – including Columbia – have already bowed to far-reaching demands from the Trump administration. © AFP 2025
New Straits Times
06-06-2025
- Politics
- New Straits Times
Court blocks Trump's new ban on foreign students at Harvard
NEW YORK: A court on Thursday placed a temporary stay on Donald Trump's latest attempt to stop foreign students enrolling at Harvard, as the US president's battle with one of the world's most prestigious universities intensified. A proclamation issued by the White House late Wednesday sought to bar most new international students at Harvard from entering the country and stated that existing foreign enrollees risked having their visas terminated. "Harvard's conduct has rendered it an unsuitable destination for foreign students and researchers," the order read. Harvard swiftly amended an existing complaint filed in federal court, stating: "This is not the Administration's first attempt to sever Harvard from its international students." "(It) is part of a concerted and escalating campaign of retaliation by the government in clear retribution for Harvard's exercising its First Amendment rights to reject the government's demands to control Harvard's governance, curriculum, and the 'ideology' of its faculty and students." US District Judge Allison Burroughs ruled on Thursday that the government could not enforce Trump's proclamation. Harvard had demonstrated, she said, that without a temporary restraining order, it risked sustaining "immediate and irreparable injury before there is an opportunity to hear from all parties." The same judge had already blocked Trump's previous effort to bar international students from enrolling at the storied university. The government has already cut around US$3.2 billion in federal grants and contracts benefiting Harvard and has pledged to exclude the Cambridge, Massachusetts, institution from any future federal funding. Harvard has been at the forefront of Trump's campaign against leading universities after defying his calls to submit to oversight of its curriculum, staffing, student recruitment, and "viewpoint diversity". Trump has also singled out international students at Harvard, who accounted for 27 per cent of total enrolment in the 2024–2025 academic year and are a major source of income. In its filing, Harvard acknowledged that Trump had the authority to bar an entire class of non-citizens if deemed in the public interest but stressed that was not the case in this instance. "The President's actions thus are not undertaken to protect the 'interests of the United States' but instead to pursue a government vendetta against Harvard," it said. Since returning to office, Trump has targeted elite US universities, which he and his allies accuse of being hotbeds of anti-Semitism, liberal bias, and "woke" ideology. Trump's education secretary also threatened on Wednesday to strip Columbia University of its accreditation. The Republican has targeted the New York Ivy League institution for allegedly ignoring the harassment of Jewish students, throwing all of its federal funding into doubt.
