Extremists have plotted to use Covid-19 as a biological weapon to carry out attacks during the pandemic.
Islamist and far-right terrorists have discussed using the virus against targets including politicians, police and minority groups.
The findings are part of a 113-page Europol report that says terrorists sought to take advantage of the pandemic by sowing division and hatred.
It is the latest in a series of warnings that detail how the social and economic fallout from the pandemic could be fertile ground for extremists.
The report says lockdowns have forced terrorists to rely on low-tech methods, such as knife attacks, vehicle ramming and homemade explosives.
Amid the chaos caused by the pandemic, discussions in some online circles turned to using biological weapons.
Suggestions included handing out poisoned masks or deliberately spreading Covid-19, for example by shipping contaminated products.
“Terrorist propaganda and online chatter suggested possible ways of weaponising the virus,” the report said.
“Close contact, airborne and fomite transmissions [via surfaces] were suggested as sources of contamination targeting minorities, politicians, police officers and medical staff.
“Right-wing extremists further suggested attacks on critical infrastructure, governmental facilities and the use of cyanide to contaminate drinking products.”
The idea of using the virus as a bioweapon also surfaced in Islamic extremist propaganda, Europol said.
But terrorists and extremists often lack the scientific knowledge to be able to use the virus as a weapon, and no such attacks have yet taken place.
Online threat
Terrorist attacks in Europe in 2020 included the assassination of a French school teacher last October and a shooting rampage in Vienna in November.
In Germany, a far-right extremist killed 10 people after opening fire at two shisha lounges before the pandemic took hold in Europe.
Once it did, schools and businesses moved online in a trend that experts fear could make young people particularly vulnerable to radicalisation.
Europol said that some of the lone actors who carried out attacks may have been radicalised online.
In the year of the Covid pandemic, the risk of online radicalisation has increased
“The online domain plays a crucial role in enabling the spread of terrorist and extremist propaganda,” said Europol’s executive director Catherine De Bolle.
“In a world which has become considerably more digital, targeting the propagation of hatred and violent ideologies spread online is an imperative.”
Ylva Johansson, the EU’s commissioner for home affairs, said the terror threat had grown especially among far-right extremists during the pandemic.
The far-right has been linked to anti-lockdown protests and Covid-19 conspiracy theories, including in Germany.
The latest report “illustrates that in the year of the Covid pandemic, the risk of online radicalisation has increased,” Ms Johansson said.
“We are committed to tackling this growing threat.”
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Director: Laila Abbas
Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum
Rating: 4/5
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Brave CF 27 fight card
Welterweight:
Abdoul Abdouraguimov (champion, FRA) v Jarrah Al Selawe (JOR)
Lightweight:
Anas Siraj Mounir (TUN) v Alex Martinez (CAN)
Welterweight:
Mzwandile Hlongwa (RSA) v Khamzat Chimaev (SWE)
Middleweight:
Tarek Suleiman (SYR) v Rustam Chsiev (RUS)
Mohammad Fakhreddine (LEB) v Christofer Silva (BRA)
Super lightweight:
Alex Nacfur (BRA) v Dwight Brooks (USA)
Bantamweight:
Jalal Al Daaja (JOR) v Tariq Ismail (CAN)
Chris Corton (PHI) v Zia Mashwani (PAK)
Featherweight:
Sulaiman (KUW) v Abdullatip (RUS)
Super lightweight:
Flavio Serafin (BRA) v Mohammad Al Katib (JOR)
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Prop idols
Girls full-contact rugby may be in its infancy in the Middle East, but there are already a number of role models for players to look up to.
Sophie Shams (Dubai Exiles mini, England sevens international)
An Emirati student who is blazing a trail in rugby. She first learnt the game at Dubai Exiles and captained her JESS Primary school team. After going to study geophysics at university in the UK, she scored a sensational try in a cup final at Twickenham. She has played for England sevens, and is now contracted to top Premiership club Saracens.
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Seren Gough-Walters (Sharjah Wanderers mini, Wales rugby league international)
Few players anywhere will have taken a more circuitous route to playing rugby on Sky Sports. Gough-Walters was born in Al Wasl Hospital in Dubai, raised in Sharjah, did not take up rugby seriously till she was 15, has a master’s in global governance and ethics, and once worked as an immigration officer at the British Embassy in Abu Dhabi. In the summer of 2021 she played for Wales against England in rugby league, in a match that was broadcast live on TV.
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Erin King (Dubai Hurricanes mini, Ireland sevens international)
Aged five, Australia-born King went to Dubai Hurricanes training at The Sevens with her brothers. She immediately struck up a deep affection for rugby. She returned to the city at the end of last year to play at the Dubai Rugby Sevens in the colours of Ireland in the Women’s World Series tournament on Pitch 1.
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
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*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
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