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    The next war on terror is directed at US citizens: Greenwald

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    Independent journalist Glenn Greenwald warned “The Ingraham Angle” and its viewers against the domestic terrorism bill passed in the House.

    GLENN GREENWALD: This is so much more dangerous, because unlike the first war on terror, which it was, for all its flaws, at least directed outward, this one is increasingly a war on terror on domestic soil aimed not at foreign nationals, but American citizens. And I’ve been on your show many times, going back to even before Biden’s inauguration, warning that this was the Democrats’ plan, because even before Jan. 6, Biden came out and said a new war on terror against domestic extremism is my number one legislative priority. And they exploited Jan. 6, and now they’re exploiting these Buffalo shootings to give all of these agencies more power to surveil and monitor and control our dissent and free speech.

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    US sanctions ISIS financial facilitators, in effort to ‘expose and disrupt’ extremist network

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    The United States on Monday sanctioned five individuals participating in an ISIS network of financial facilitators operating across Indonesia, Syria and Turkey in an effort to “expose and disrupt” the network of “violent extremists.” 

    The Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated a network of five Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) financial facilitators operating across Indonesia, Syria and Turkey. The five individuals had played a “key role in facilitating the travel of extremists to Syria and other areas where ISIS operates.” 

    PENTAGON: ‘NO QUESTION’ AFGHANISTAN WITHDRAWAL MAKES IDENTIFYING TERROR THREATS MORE DIFFICULT

    The Treasury Department said the network has also conducted financial transfers to support ISIS efforts in Syria-based displaced persons camps by collecting funds in Indonesia and Turkey, some of which were used to pay for smuggling children out of the camps and delivering them to ISIS foreign fighters as potential recruits.

    The designation comes amid the 16th meeting of the Counter ISIS Finance Group of the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS. The U.S., Italy and Saudi Arabia co-lead the CIFG, which comprises nearly 70 countries and international organizations, and coordinates efforts against ISIS financial support networks worldwide.

    FILE PHOTO: Signage is seen at the United States Department of the Treasury headquarters in Washington, D.C., U.S., August 29, 2020. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo (REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo)

    Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Monday that by designating them, the Biden administration aims “to expose and disrupt an international ISIS facilitation network that has financed ISIS recruitment, including of vulnerable children in Syria.”

    Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks after viewing the “Burma’s Path To Genocide” exhibit at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, Monday, March 21, 2022. ((Kevin Lamarque, Pool via AP) )

    Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian E. Nelson said Monday that the U.S., as part of the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS, “is committed to denying ISIS the ability to raise and move funds across multiple jurisdictions.”

    According to the Treasury Department, residents of “displaced persons camps” in Syria include those who have been displaced by ISIS, as well as ISIS members, supporters and their families.

    “ISIS sympathizers in over 40 countries have sent money to ISIS-linked individuals in these camps in support of ISIS’s future resurgence,” the Treasury Department said Monday, noting that Al-Hawl is the largest displaced persons camp in northeast Syria, and it holds up to 70,000 people, most of whom are women and children.

    U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen speaks during a news conference with Irish Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe at Government buildings in Dublin, Ireland, Nov. 1, 2021. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne (REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne)

    ISIS ‘BEATLE’ MEMBER SENTENCED TO LIFE IN PRISON FOR TERROR BEHEADINGS

    “In al-Hawl alone, ISIS supporters have received up to $20,000 per month via hawala, an informal transfer mechanism; the majority of those funds transfers have originated outside Syria or passed through neighboring countries such as Turkey,” Treasury said Monday.  “Additionally, since 2019, ISIS has been smuggling its associates out of al-Hawl largely to Idlib, Deir ez-Zor, and Raqqa Governorates in Syria. ISIS is particularly focused on smuggling children out of displaced persons camps for recruitment as fighters.” 

    The individuals designated Monday include Dwi Dahlia Susanti, who has been an ISIS financial facilitator since at least 2017; Rudy Heryadi, who advised extremist associates about potential travel to “ISIS-dominated areas, including Afghanistan, Egypt, and other parts of Africa and Yemen;” and Ari Kardian, who has been charged by Indonesian authorities with facilitating the travel of Indonesians to Syria to join ISIS.

    The Treasury Department said the individuals are being targeted “for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, ISIS.”

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    In addition, Susanti’s “accomplices and financial facilitators” were also designated, including Muhammad Dandi Adhiguna and Dina Ramadhani. They are being targeted “for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, Susanti.”

    The sanctions against the five individuals ensure that all property of those individuals are blocked and reported.

    Republicans blast Mayorkas for pushing ‘absolutely shameful’ narrative about ‘domestic terrorism’

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    The inability of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas this week to name a single case of domestic terrorism that his department has referred to the Department of Justice for prosecution has outraged Republicans and amplified their calls for Mayorkas to resign or be impeached.

    During testimony before the House Judiciary Committee on Thursday, Mayorkas reaffirmed his assessment that “domestic violent extremism represents the greatest terrorism-related threat to the homeland.” 

    Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., pressed Mayorkas for data on any referrals he has made to the DOJ on the grounds of domestic terrorism. Mayorkas did not offer any, saying he would provide it after the hearing.

    MAYORKAS WON’T NAME 1 DOMESTIC TERROR, WHITE SUPREMACY CASE REFERRED TO DOJ

    Steube told Fox News Digital he hasn’t heard back from DHS, and he’s doubtful he’ll ever get a response. 

    Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas faced questions from Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., during a hearing April 28, 2022. (Fox News)

    In interviews with several GOP lawmakers following the testy exchange, Republicans accused the Biden Administration of overstating or even fabricating the threat of domestic terrorism as a way to avoid the real issue of the surge of migrant border crossings that have reached historically high numbers.

    “It tells you that they haven’t referred anybody from Homeland Security to DOJ on domestic terrorism or White nationalism-related charges,” Steube told Fox News Digital. “And it just goes to show you that the narrative that the Biden administration is trying to create that the No. 1 threat to the homeland is White nationalism and domestic terrorism isn’t true.”

    Steube supports Mayorkas’ impeachment if the GOP retakes Congress. 

    “They’re trying to avoid the clear threat to our democracy and to the safety and security of the American people at the southern border,” Steube said. 

    DHS did not respond to requests for comment from Fox News Digital seeking data on domestic terrorism criminal referrals and further information on the DHS assessment that domestic terrorism is a greater threat to the homeland than the surge of immigrants at the border. 

    There were more than 1.7 million migrant encounters in FY 2021, and FY 2022 is on pace to exceed that, with what is expected to be more than 1 million encounters in the first six months of the fiscal year alone. At least 23 people coming across the southern border in 2021 were on the terror watch list. 

    BORDER PATROL STOPPED 23 PEOPLE ON TERRORIST DATABASE AT SOUTHERN BORDER IN 2021: CBP DATA

    “Democrats are absolutely gaslighting the American people,” Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., said of Mayorkas’ domestic terrorism claims. “I do not believe that is the biggest threat to our homeland. Our biggest threat is the southern border and the invasion that is taking place.”

    Boebert backs impeachment and Friday authored legislation to defund another Mayorkas’ initiative — the “Disinformation Governance Board,” which is designed to root out misinformation. 

    Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., speaks at a news conference held by members of the House Freedom Caucus on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, July 29, 2021, to complain about Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and masking policies.  (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

    Rep. Jim Banks, the chairman of the Republican Study Committee, accused President Biden’s homeland security chief of spreading falsehoods. Banks already led a letter with 130 fellow Republicans, including GOP leadership, that questioned Mayorkas’ “suitability for office.”

    “The Biden administration continues to shamelessly lie to the American people and uses ‘disinformation’ as a label to slander and discredit their critics,” Banks, R-Ind., said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “Mayorkas’s inability to cite a single case of White supremacist terrorism, despite claiming it’s the single greatest threat to the nation, is exactly why DHS has created a new ‘Disinformation Governance Board.'”

    LAUREN BOEBERT LEADS EFFORT TO DEFUND BIDEN ADMINISTRATION’S ‘DISINFORMATION’ BOARD

    House Freedom Caucus Chairman Scott Perry, R-Pa., scolded Mayorkas for focusing more on U.S. citizens than the “criminals and potential terrorists” crossing the border.  

    “His goal is to stigmatize Democrat political opponents by accusing them of being domestic terrorists but couldn’t name a single prosecution referral made to the Justice Department,” Perry told Fox News Digital. “He should be securing our nation from the invasion on our southern border and protecting Americans, instead of acting as the handmaiden for the messaging machine of the radical left.”

    During the hearing, Mayorkas touted efforts to root out domestic terrorism, including creating a new Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships (CP3) to help communities prevent radicalization to violence and designating domestic violent extremism as a national priority area in FEMA grant programs. He also touted the creation of a dedicated domestic terrorism branch within the Department’s Office of Intelligence & Analysis that “has been disseminating an unprecedented level of information and intelligence” to state and local partners to counter threats. 

    “We remain vigilant against all forms of terrorism and targeted violence,” Mayorkas said. “The nature of these threats has evolved, but our vigilance and resolve are constant.”

    Mayorkas is not alone in his assessment that domestic violent extremism is the greatest terrorism related threat to the homeland. Other high-ranking officials in the Biden administration and congressional Democrats have shared the same message. 

    MAYORKAS SAYS WHITE SUPREMACISTS POSE ‘MOST PROMINENT THREAT’ TO US HOMELAND

    Attorney General Merrick Garland and FBI Director Christopher Wray have testified before Congress that domestic violent extremist groups, including White supremacists, pose a growing threat to the United States.

    “The threat of lethality is higher than it ever was … I have not seen a more dangerous threat to democracy than the invasion of the U.S. Capitol” on Jan. 6, Garland told a Senate committee in May, according to Reuters. 

    FBI Director Christopher A. Wray (Mark WIlson/Getty Images)

    Wray said in September 2021 the FBI has “surged” resources to handle a growing caseload, which has jumped from about 1,000 investigations in the spring of 2020 to about 2,700 investigations. 

    Wray said in congressional testimony the greatest terrorist threat in the U.S. is from lone actors. That includes homegrown jihadists espousing ISIS ideologies, as well as domestic violent extremists “radicalized by personalized grievances ranging from racial and ethnic bias to anti-government, anti-authority sentiment to conspiracy theories,” he said. 

    Wray classified the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol as “domestic terrorism.” 

    Though Mayorkas didn’t mention this in his response to Steube Thursday, the Homeland Security leader previously pointed to the “repeated and persistent bomb threats” against Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) as reason for concern. In talking about the threat of domestic violent extremism earlier this month, Mayorkas further specified that “the most prominent threat is the threat of White supremacists.”

    Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas testifies before the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill, Thursday, April 28, 2022, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

    This year, more than one-third of the country’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) have received bomb threats, according to the White House. No explosive devices were found, but the campus disruptions and the fears the threats generated prompted the Biden Administration to announce new grant funding in March to HBCUs ranging from $50,000 to $150,000 per school affected.

    The FBI has investigated at least 59 threats of violence against HBCUs, including Howard University, since the beginning of the year, according to Inside Higher Ed. The threats are classified as racially motivated violent extremism and hate crimes, according to the FBI. 

    “This investigation is of the highest priority for the Bureau,” the FBI said in February. 

    House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., agrees with Mayorkas that domestic violent extremism represents the greatest terrorism threat to the homeland. His committee has held hearings examining the domestic terrorism threat, including against Black churches and colleges. 

    Thompson’s office points to the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) 2022 official threat assessment report that said lone wolves and small terrorist cells motivated by various ideologies “probably present the greatest terrorist threat to the United States,” including racial/ethnic violent extremism and militia extremism. 

    House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., shares a similar concern. He opened the Mayorkas hearing on Thursday sounding the alarm on domestic terrorism.

    TOP HOUSE REPUBLICANS QUESTION MAYORKAS’ ‘SUITABILITY FOR OFFICE’ AMID BORDER CRISIS

    “America faces a multitude of challenges,” Nadler said Thursday. “But one of the greatest modern threats to our homeland is the danger posed by violent far-right extremists and White supremacists.”

    Nadler added that “2020 had the highest number of domestic terror incidents and plots in over 30 years; 66% of those were by White supremacists, extremist militia members and other violent far-right extremists.”

    Rep. August Pfluger R-Texas, talks with migrants he encountered at the Texas-Mexico border June 30, 2021.  (Jessica Weiner, Republican Study Committee)

    But Texas GOP Rep. August Pfluger, a former Air Force fighter pilot and former national security adviser to President Trump, said the American people just don’t believe the Biden administration’s threat assessment.

    “His testimony in front of Congress was absolutely shameful,” Pfluger told Fox News Digital. “He should be deployed to the southern border right now.”

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    Pfluger, who has called for Mayorkas’ resignation, said the pressing threats are not from domestic White supremacists, but from Russia, China, cyberattacks and people on the terror watch list coming across the southern border.

    “I’ve spent my entire professional career analyzing threats, fighting against those threats [and] strategizing how to put our country into a better position to deter those [threats],” Pfluger said. “It’s 100% political narrative. At what point in time is Secretary Mayorkas going to put patriotism over politics?”

    Mayorkas won’t name 1 domestic terror, White supremacy case referred to DOJ

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    Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas on Thursday failed to name a case of domestic terrorism that his department has referred to the Department of Justice.

    Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., pressed Mayorkas for data on any referrals he has made to the DOJ on the grounds of domestic terrorism. Mayorkas did not offer the data, saying he would provide it after the hearing.

    “Congressman, I will provide you with that information subsequent to this hearing,” Mayorkas replied to Steube. “I do not have that statistic. I will provide the data to you.”

    REP. ISSA ACCUSES DHS CHIEF MAYORKAS OF SECRETLY ENDING TITLE 42 EARLY

    The pair continued to clash on the subject, with Steube interrupting Mayorkas to demand he name one such case off the top of his head. Mayorkas continued to decline to answer.

    DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas testifies during an April 2022 House hearing; (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

    Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas faced questions from Rep. Greg Steube, F-Fla., during a hearing April 28, 2022. (Fox News)

    “Despite claiming domestic terrorism is the #1 threat to the homeland, [Secretary Mayorkas] can’t name a single case that he referred from DHS to DOJ for white supremacy or domestic terrorism,” Rep. Greg Steube later said of his exchange with Mayorkas.

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    Mayorkas testified before the House Judiciary Committee on Thursday, where he was expected to face tough questioning regarding the Biden administration’s plan to lift Title 42, a Trump-era public health order that has been used to expel a majority of migrants at the border during the COVID-19 pandemic.

    Mayorkas says White supremacists pose ‘most prominent threat’ to US homeland

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    White supremacists pose the biggest terror threat to the United States, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Friday amid a surge of illegal border crossings. 

    The Department of Homeland Security has assessed that “the greatest terrorism-related threat that we face in the homeland is the threat of domestic violent extremism,” Mayorkas said. 

    Citing an “increase in hate” that’s spread on social media and other online platforms, Mayorkas further specified that “the most prominent threat is the threat of White supremacists.”

    Mayorkas made the remarks during a speech at Al Sharpton’s National Action Network conference in New York City. The secretary pointed to the “repeated and persistent bomb threats” against Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in recent months as an example of the threats and talked of his recent work with Black universities and churches to improve security. 

    Immigrant men are taken into custody by U.S. Border Patrol agents at the U.S.-Mexico border. (John Moore/Getty Images)

    Both Mayorkas and Attorney General Merrick Garland previously said White supremacist extremists represent the most persistent and lethal threat to the homeland when they testified before the Senate last May. Mentioning the Jan. 6 attack at the Capitol, Mayorkas and Garland said their agencies would dedicate more resources to fight against domestic terrorism, create new intelligence initiatives and work with foreign partners and tech companies to help stem the growing threat, the Washington Post reported at the time. 

    Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas speaks during a news conference at The National Press Club in Washington (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

    Mayorkas’ threat assessment comes at a time of historically high illegal border crossings.

    There were more than 1.7 million migrant encounters in FY 2021, and FY 2022 is on pace to exceed that, with what is expected to be more than 1 million encounters in the first six months of the fiscal year alone. 

    Border agents will lose another tool in May when the Biden Administration ends the Title 42 public health order that has been used since March 2020 to quickly expel a majority of migrants at the border due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

    Mayorkas reaffirmed Friday that Title 42 is going away, and migrants will be able to claim asylum. 

    United States Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas (Hector Vivas/Getty Images)

    “Our asylum laws provide that if one qualifies, one can access residency in the United States,” Mayorkas said. “And if one does not, one can be removed. In the time of the pandemic, we have been exercising Title 42.

    “It is a public health imperative, not an immigration policy. … Title 42 will end on May 23 as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has expressed, and then we will be implementing our asylum process as it was designed.”

    Fox News’ Adam Shaw contributed to this report.  

    US general says counter-terrorism efforts are ‘more difficult’ after Biden’s Afghanistan withdrawal

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    Conducting effective counter-terrorism operations is “more difficult” following President Joe Biden‘s withdrawal of the U.S. military from Afghanistan, U.S. Gen. Richard Clarke testified in the Senate on Tuesday.

    Clark, the commander of the United States Special Operations Command (USSOC), testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee regarding Biden’s proposed 2023 military budget. Republican Nebraska Sen. Deb Fischer questioned Clarke about the challenges of conducting USSOC counter-terrorism operations in extremist hotbeds without the assets provided by the previous U.S. deployment in Afghanistan.

    “Can you describe the challenges of conducting over-the-horizon CT [counter-terrorism] operations without reliable partners on the ground, without basing access in neighboring countries, and without reliable access to airspace?” Fischer asked.

    “Senator, it is more difficult,” Clarke responded. “And I’m not gonna sit in front of this committee and say that it is not.”

    “I would also on the same hand, though, say that over the last 20 years we have developed exquisite capabilities, and we can conduct counterterrorism missions over the horizon. We have exhibited that in the past,” Clarke continued.

    BIDEN’S AFGHANISTAN WITHDRAWAL FAILURES DETAILED IN REPORT

    Clarke went on to state that the special forces under his command are capable of over-the-horizon operations, however. He stated the most important factor in effective counter-terrorism is the information gathering that allows operations to take place.

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    While the vast majority of Americans supported the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, Biden faced heavy criticism for his execution of the operation. He stated ahead of time that the operation would be safe and orderly, but ultimately became deadly and chaotic.

    More than a dozen U.S. soldiers were killed in a bombing attack while defending the Kabul airport during frantic evacuation efforts. Footage also showed some desperate Afghan civilians clinging to U.S. aircraft during takeoff, only to fall to their deaths.

    Biden’s withdrawal left more than a hundred U.S. citizens stranded in Afghanistan under Taliban rule, along with thousands of Afghan allies who had supported the U.S. deployment. 

    US general says counter-terrorism efforts are ‘more difficult’ after Biden’s Afghanistan withdrawal

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    Conducting effective counter-terrorism operations is “more difficult” following President Joe Biden‘s withdrawal of the U.S. military from Afghanistan, U.S. Gen. Richard Clarke testified in the Senate on Tuesday.

    Clark, the commander of the United States Special Operations Command (USSOC), testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee regarding Biden’s proposed 2023 military budget. Republican Nebraska Sen. Deb Fischer questioned Clarke about the challenges of conducting USSOC counter-terrorism operations in extremist hotbeds without the assets provided by the previous U.S. deployment in Afghanistan.

    “Can you describe the challenges of conducting over-the-horizon CT [counter-terrorism] operations without reliable partners on the ground, without basing access in neighboring countries, and without reliable access to airspace?” Fischer asked.

    “Senator, it is more difficult,” Clarke responded. “And I’m not gonna sit in front of this committee and say that it is not.”

    “I would also on the same hand, though, say that over the last 20 years we have developed exquisite capabilities, and we can conduct counterterrorism missions over the horizon. We have exhibited that in the past,” Clarke continued.

    BIDEN’S AFGHANISTAN WITHDRAWAL FAILURES DETAILED IN REPORT

    Clarke went on to state that the special forces under his command are capable of over-the-horizon operations, however. He stated the most important factor in effective counter-terrorism is the information gathering that allows operations to take place.

    CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

    While the vast majority of Americans supported the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, Biden faced heavy criticism for his execution of the operation. He stated ahead of time that the operation would be safe and orderly, but ultimately became deadly and chaotic.

    More than a dozen U.S. soldiers were killed in a bombing attack while defending the Kabul airport during frantic evacuation efforts. Footage also showed some desperate Afghan civilians clinging to U.S. aircraft during takeoff, only to fall to their deaths.

    Biden’s withdrawal left more than a hundred U.S. citizens stranded in Afghanistan under Taliban rule, along with thousands of Afghan allies who had supported the U.S. deployment. 

    US general says counter-terrorism efforts are ‘more difficult’ after Biden’s Afghanistan withdrawal

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    Conducting effective counter-terrorism operations is “more difficult” following President Joe Biden‘s withdrawal of the U.S. military from Afghanistan, U.S. Gen. Richard Clarke testified in the Senate on Tuesday.

    Clark, the commander of the United States Special Operations Command (USSOC), testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee regarding Biden’s proposed 2023 military budget. Republican Nebraska Sen. Deb Fischer questioned Clarke about the challenges of conducting USSOC counter-terrorism operations in extremist hotbeds without the assets provided by the previous U.S. deployment in Afghanistan.

    “Can you describe the challenges of conducting over-the-horizon CT [counter-terrorism] operations without reliable partners on the ground, without basing access in neighboring countries, and without reliable access to airspace?” Fischer asked.

    “Senator, it is more difficult,” Clarke responded. “And I’m not gonna sit in front of this committee and say that it is not.”

    “I would also on the same hand, though, say that over the last 20 years we have developed exquisite capabilities, and we can conduct counterterrorism missions over the horizon. We have exhibited that in the past,” Clarke continued.

    BIDEN’S AFGHANISTAN WITHDRAWAL FAILURES DETAILED IN REPORT

    Clarke went on to state that the special forces under his command are capable of over-the-horizon operations, however. He stated the most important factor in effective counter-terrorism is the information gathering that allows operations to take place.

    CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

    While the vast majority of Americans supported the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, Biden faced heavy criticism for his execution of the operation. He stated ahead of time that the operation would be safe and orderly, but ultimately became deadly and chaotic.

    More than a dozen U.S. soldiers were killed in a bombing attack while defending the Kabul airport during frantic evacuation efforts. Footage also showed some desperate Afghan civilians clinging to U.S. aircraft during takeoff, only to fall to their deaths.

    Biden’s withdrawal left more than a hundred U.S. citizens stranded in Afghanistan under Taliban rule, along with thousands of Afghan allies who had supported the U.S. deployment. 

    US general says counter-terrorism efforts are ‘more difficult’ after Biden’s Afghanistan withdrawal

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    Conducting effective counter-terrorism operations is “more difficult” following President Joe Biden‘s withdrawal of the U.S. military from Afghanistan, U.S. Gen. Richard Clarke testified in the Senate on Tuesday.

    Clark, the commander of the United States Special Operations Command (USSOC), testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee regarding Biden’s proposed 2023 military budget. Republican Nebraska Sen. Deb Fischer questioned Clarke about the challenges of conducting USSOC counter-terrorism operations in extremist hotbeds without the assets provided by the previous U.S. deployment in Afghanistan.

    “Can you describe the challenges of conducting over-the-horizon CT [counter-terrorism] operations without reliable partners on the ground, without basing access in neighboring countries, and without reliable access to airspace?” Fischer asked.

    “Senator, it is more difficult,” Clarke responded. “And I’m not gonna sit in front of this committee and say that it is not.”

    “I would also on the same hand, though, say that over the last 20 years we have developed exquisite capabilities, and we can conduct counterterrorism missions over the horizon. We have exhibited that in the past,” Clarke continued.

    BIDEN’S AFGHANISTAN WITHDRAWAL FAILURES DETAILED IN REPORT

    Clarke went on to state that the special forces under his command are capable of over-the-horizon operations, however. He stated the most important factor in effective counter-terrorism is the information gathering that allows operations to take place.

    CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

    While the vast majority of Americans supported the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, Biden faced heavy criticism for his execution of the operation. He stated ahead of time that the operation would be safe and orderly, but ultimately became deadly and chaotic.

    More than a dozen U.S. soldiers were killed in a bombing attack while defending the Kabul airport during frantic evacuation efforts. Footage also showed some desperate Afghan civilians clinging to U.S. aircraft during takeoff, only to fall to their deaths.

    Biden’s withdrawal left more than a hundred U.S. citizens stranded in Afghanistan under Taliban rule, along with thousands of Afghan allies who had supported the U.S. deployment. 

    US general says counter-terrorism efforts are ‘more difficult’ after Biden’s Afghanistan withdrawal

    NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

    Conducting effective counter-terrorism operations is “more difficult” following President Joe Biden‘s withdrawal of the U.S. military from Afghanistan, U.S. Gen. Richard Clarke testified in the Senate on Tuesday.

    Clark, the commander of the United States Special Operations Command (USSOC), testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee regarding Biden’s proposed 2023 military budget. Republican Nebraska Sen. Deb Fischer questioned Clarke about the challenges of conducting USSOC counter-terrorism operations in extremist hotbeds without the assets provided by the previous U.S. deployment in Afghanistan.

    “Can you describe the challenges of conducting over-the-horizon CT [counter-terrorism] operations without reliable partners on the ground, without basing access in neighboring countries, and without reliable access to airspace?” Fischer asked.

    “Senator, it is more difficult,” Clarke responded. “And I’m not gonna sit in front of this committee and say that it is not.”

    “I would also on the same hand, though, say that over the last 20 years we have developed exquisite capabilities, and we can conduct counterterrorism missions over the horizon. We have exhibited that in the past,” Clarke continued.

    BIDEN’S AFGHANISTAN WITHDRAWAL FAILURES DETAILED IN REPORT

    Clarke went on to state that the special forces under his command are capable of over-the-horizon operations, however. He stated the most important factor in effective counter-terrorism is the information gathering that allows operations to take place.

    CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

    While the vast majority of Americans supported the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, Biden faced heavy criticism for his execution of the operation. He stated ahead of time that the operation would be safe and orderly, but ultimately became deadly and chaotic.

    More than a dozen U.S. soldiers were killed in a bombing attack while defending the Kabul airport during frantic evacuation efforts. Footage also showed some desperate Afghan civilians clinging to U.S. aircraft during takeoff, only to fall to their deaths.

    Biden’s withdrawal left more than a hundred U.S. citizens stranded in Afghanistan under Taliban rule, along with thousands of Afghan allies who had supported the U.S. deployment.