Faith-Based Daily Awareness Post 07 December 2023

These updates are shared to help raise the situational awareness of Faith-Based organizations to best defend against and mitigate the impacts from all-hazards threats including physical security, cybersecurity, and natural disasters. 

FBI Testimony: Oversight of the Federal Bureau of Investigation

Selected excerpts from the FBI Director’s testimony as posted on the FBI’s website:

• The greatest terrorism threat to our homeland is posed by lone actors or small cells of individuals who typically radicalize to violence online, and who primarily use easily accessible weapons to attack soft targets.
• Domestic and homegrown violent extremists are often motivated and inspired by a mix of social or political, ideological, and personal grievances against their targets, and more recently have focused on accessible targets to include civilians, law enforcement and the military, symbols or members of the U.S. government, houses of worship, retail locations, and mass public gatherings. Lone actors present a particular challenge to law enforcement and intelligence agencies.
• The top domestic terrorism threat we face continues to be from DVEs we categorize as racially or ethnically motivated violent extremists (“RMVEs”) and anti-government or anti-authority violent extremists (“AGAAVEs”).
• The FBI assesses HVEs as the greatest, most immediate international terrorism threat to the homeland.
• While we work to assist our Israeli colleagues and understand the global implications of the ongoing conflict in Israel, we are paying heightened attention to how the events abroad could directly affect and inspire people to commit violence here in the homeland.
• We have seen an increase in reported threats to Jewish and Muslim people, institutions, and houses of worship here in the United States and are moving quickly to mitigate them.
• As of right now, we have no information to indicate that Hamas has the intent or capability to conduct operations inside the U.S., though we cannot, and do not, discount that possibility, but we are especially concerned about the possibility of Hamas supporters engaging in violence on the group’s behalf. As always, we are concerned with any foreign terrorist organization who may exploit the attacks in Israel as a tool to mobilize their followers around the world.
• These have included the targeting of individuals, houses of worship, and institutions associated with the Jewish and Muslim faiths with acts of physical assault, vandalism, or harassment. Anti-Semitism and anti-Islamic sentiment permeate many violent extremist ideologies and serves as a primary driver for attacks by a diverse set of violent extremists who pose a persistent threat to Jewish and Muslim communities and institutions in the United States and abroad.

Excerpts from the FBI Director’s opening statement as posted on the FBI’s website:

• Director Wray’s Opening Statement to the Senate Judiciary Committee

Analyst Comments:

The FBI Director’s testimony provides unclassified insight into the threats faced by communities of faith. While no classified material was made public, the Director’s public remarks are likely influenced by a wide range of classified material.

Faith-Based Organizations (FBO) should consider receiving threat intelligence from a variety of sources, including Fusion Centers, local law enforcement, and open sources. While using open-source intelligence (OSINT), be aware of misinformation, disinformation, and malinformation (MDM).

The Faith-Based Information Sharing and Analysis Organization (ISAO) provides members with Information that can be trusted to provide communities of faith with accurate threat, prevention, protection, and mitigation information. Also, FB-ISAO members are sharing information about threats in FB-ISAO Slack.

FB-ISAO also offers educational sessions and other activities to assist FBOs in preparedness and mitigation.  

If not already a member, consider joining here.

Follow Up to DOJ and DHS Pre-Holiday Security Briefing and Training for Faith-based Communities

Attorney General Merrick B. Garland Delivers Remarks to Faith Leaders to Provide Update on Security Resources and Training

The Attorney General and DHS Secretary’s opening addresses were open to the press, but the rest of the briefing was closed to the press.

Related Articles:

• US Faith-Based Groups Face Increased Threat This Holiday Season
• A new Homeland Security guide aims to help houses of worship protect themselves

The AP and VOA articles above discuss CISA’s Physical Security Performance Goals for Faith-Based Communities that was highlighted in yesterday’s FB-ISAO’s Daily Awareness Post.