The U.S. government has taken a significant step in addressing extremist online networks by designating the “Terrorgram” collective as a terrorist group. This move, announced on Monday, comes with sanctions aimed at individuals and the group itself, accusing them of promoting violent white supremacy.
The U.S. State Department officially labeled the group, which primarily operates on the Telegram platform, as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist organization. In addition to the group, three of its leaders—located in Brazil, Croatia, and South Africa—were also sanctioned. These measures freeze any assets linked to the group in the U.S. and prohibit American individuals from engaging with them.
The State Department detailed that “Terrorgram” has been responsible for motivating and facilitating violent attacks, including a 2022 shooting outside an LGBTQ bar in Slovakia, a planned 2024 attack on energy facilities in New Jersey, and an August knife attack at a mosque in Turkey. The group is known for its promotion of violent white supremacist ideologies, inciting violence against perceived enemies, and providing guidance on attack methods and targets. These include critical infrastructure and government officials, as well as marginalized communities such as Black, Jewish, LGBTQ individuals, and immigrants.
In response, Telegram stated that it has a zero-tolerance policy for calls to violence and noted that it had previously removed several channels associated with “Terrorgram.” The platform emphasized that any similar content is swiftly banned upon detection.
Earlier this year, U.S. prosecutors charged two individuals linked to “Terrorgram,” accusing them of using the Telegram platform to incite a race war by soliciting attacks against various minority groups. The United Kingdom also moved to classify the “Terrorgram” collective as a terrorist organization in April, making it illegal to belong to or promote the group in the country.
This designation is part of a broader effort by U.S. President Joe Biden to combat domestic terrorism, particularly white supremacy. The Biden administration’s 2021 National Strategy for Countering Domestic Terrorism included measures to identify and prosecute such threats while also creating deterrents to prevent U.S. citizens from joining dangerous extremist groups.