The Western Situation of Environmental Terrorism

People have the impression that animal protection organizations always express their wishes through relatively mild methods such as propaganda, demonstrations, sit-ins, etc. The use of extreme methods such as intimidation, destruction, and robbery to promote animal protection has become popular in the United States. U.S. officials stated on the 18th that extremist animal protection groups and "eco-terrorists" have now become one of the most serious forms of terrorism in the United States. Since 1990, these extreme animal protection groups have committed at least 1,200 criminal cases. The FBI is still investigating 150 criminal cases involving these "eco-terrorists." In particular, the actions of two organizations, the Animal Liberation Front (ALF) and the Earth Liberation Front (ELF), in recent years can even be described as "terrorism."

The Earth Liberation Front was primarily involved in setting fire to stores selling sports utility vehicles. Most of the cases committed by the "Animal Liberation Front" were arson or bombing of animal research laboratories, pharmaceutical factories, and cosmetics manufacturers. In the past 10 years, the damage caused by these extreme animal protection groups has reached 110 million US dollars.

In 1998, in the largest ski resort in North America, within the jurisdiction of Weir Company in the Grand Canyon of the Colorado, a fire inexplicably broke out on a cold night, and 4 expensive buildings, 3 A ski lift was flattened. It was the largest loss to mainstream America due to green terrorism: $1.2 million worth.

At the end of 2000, nine luxury villas on Long Island in the United States were reduced to ashes overnight. Because they are built on a natural peach orchard. ELF (Earth Liberation Front), the most famous environmental terrorist organization, as usual, justifiably left the slogan "If you build it, I will burn it" after setting the fire.

Violent actions by environmentalists have been on a vertical upward trend in recent years: from 6 incidents per year in 1986 to 300 incidents per year in 2000. The new motto for radical environmentalists is "Be on the front lines, take direct action and get results." An American community research expert said, "The rise of green terrorism is also because young people today have the ambition to participate in politics. They want to express their opinions. In addition, the Internet also allows them to discuss this issue on a larger scale. , and it is easier to know how to make homemade bombs.”

The extreme actions of animal protection organizations not only bring trouble to themselves, but may also be counterproductive to their ultimate goal-protecting animals. role. At present, the FBI has begun an investigation into the destruction of Forest Scientific Research Company. A federal court in New Jersey will try seven defendants next month. These people are suspected of setting up websites to encourage attacks on Huntingdon Life Sciences and its partners. Launch an attack. "There's no question that the animal welfare and environmental movements have become radicalized in part," said Mark Potok, director of the Southern Poverty Law Center's Intelligence Program. The people turned and left, "Will the next target they attack be a laboratory researching cancer or Alzheimer's disease?"

John Lewis, a senior official in the FBI's counterterrorism division, on the 18th The Senate Environmental Protection and Public Works Committee said that extreme animal protection groups pose a serious threat to the domestic security of the United States. “Extremists use arson, bombings, theft, release, vandalism and office occupations to achieve their goals.” Between 1990 and 2004, animal and environmental extremists were involved in approximately “1,200 cases, resulting in millions of dollars in property damage”. "Investigating and preventing extremist behavior by animal rights activists and environmental terrorism is one of the most important domestic tasks facing the FBI," Lewis said. The FBI will "investigate those who commit crimes in the name of protecting the environment and animals." Bring the true criminals to justice.