Canadian Intelligence Eh
Everywhere you look these days terrorism and violent extremism dominate the headlines. Whether you follow what is happening in Afghanistan or Iraq, or in the West writ large, we are inundated with news of attacks by groups and individuals fighting for a 'cause'.In a world of multiple voices and opinions it can be very hard to know where to turn. One choice is to look to those who actually worked in counterterrorism in the national security world. In these half-hour podcasts 30-year Canadian intelligence veteran Phil Gurski is joined by a fascinating array of individuals with something meaningful to say about these issues as they provide insight into what they mean and what we need to do about them.
Canadian Intelligence Eh
Episode 272 - What will the German government decision to label the AfD backfire?
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Phil Gurski
That extremist/terrorist groups can form political parties - and in some cases actually govern - is not unknown. Hamas ran Gaza until the Israeli invasion in October 2023, Hizballah controlled much of southern Lebanon and even ISIS created a so-called 'Caliphate' in Iraq and Syria in the 2010s. In Germany, the Alternativ fuer Deutschland (AfD - Alternative for Germany) has become very popular in recent elections but, because of some of its anti-immigrant positions the German security service (BfV - Bundesamt für Verfassungsschutz) said the party is an “extremist” organisation. Borealis talks with Atlantic reporter Graeme Wood on this issue.