Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee sought answers Tuesday about recent internet rumors warning of supposed invasions being planned by anti-fascist activists, or Antifa.
Reps. Raja Krishnamoorthi of Illinois and Peter Welch of Vermont asked the heads of the FBI and CIA if either was investigating the bogus reports about Antifa circulating online.
Addressed to FBI Director Christopher A. Wray and CIA Director Gina Haspel, the letter notes that “localized misinformation” involving nonexistent Antifa gatherings and “invasions” have recently appeared on platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Craigslist and Nextdoor, resulting in some instances where armed residents have staged counterprotests in response.
“These posts usually cite text messages — which appear to be variations of template messages — claiming active duty military personnel or members of local police departments provided the information,” the lawmakers noted. “State and local authorities in the majority of these communities deny any involvement on the part of their department.”
The lawmakers note that social media companies including Facebook and Twitter have previously connected fake Antifa profiles on their platforms to U.S-based White nationalist groups Identity Evropa and American Guard, while similar misinformation campaigns have been traced in the past to accounts operated out of Russia and China.
“The apparent similarities in the dissemination methods to previously identified disinformation campaigns from foreign nationals and designated hate groups merit further investigation,” they wrote.
The FBI confirmed it received the letter but declined to comment otherwise. Attempts to reach the CIA were not immediately successful.
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