ABSTRACT
The coronavirus, known officially as SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19), is an apex and an evolving threat. As the virus spreads and mutates, the threat groups are exploring and exploiting the pandemic to advance their agenda. Although lockdowns inhibit attacks in government-controlled areas, terrorist attacks continue unabated in the conflict areas. While government entities and military forces abide by lockdown measures, postponing training and scaling down operations, insurgent and terrorist groups operate relatively freely in mounting attacks. Both in the battlefields and off-the-battlefields, threat groups invest in digital acceleration, maintaining strength and ideological influence during COVID-19. From disseminating propaganda to raising funds, these threat groups foment racial and religious tension and violence. By engaging in such support activity, terrorist and extremist groups fuel the recruiting momentum. They link up online with like-minded groups and build communities of supporters and sympathizers. The religious fanatics argue that COVID-19 is a “soldier of God,” “a divine retribution,” and waging “Corona jihad” to infect opponents. While Muslim fanatics advocate infecting Muslim officials and non-Muslims, Far Right (Extreme Right Wing: XRW) advocated direct action of deliberately spreading the virus to “non-whites” – minorities and immigrants. The Far-Right movements mount cyber-attacks on anti-pandemic individuals and health institutions to accelerate the crisis. The ethnopolitical groups lobby to build support and influence both at home and abroad.
