By Simon Lewis
WASHINGTON, July 15 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will host a conference on 'far-left political terrorism' on Thursday, seeking to rally international support against left-wing movements the Trump administration says law enforcement has overlooked.
At least 65 countries will be represented at the event, some by foreign or interior ministers and some by lower-level officials, said a senior State Department official, who briefed reporters on condition of anonymity.
The day-long event would allow counterterrorism practitioners to discuss what the Trump administration says is a growing and sophisticated global threat, the official said.
The long-planned conference has led some former officials and observers to warn that the administration may be diverting resources toward groups responsible for a relatively small number of attacks at the expense of Islamic militants and right-wing extremists. State Department officials say the concern is unfounded.
President Donald Trump has made countering left-wing groups — antifa in particular — a priority. He singled out the movement on the campaign trail in 2024, and he vowed to take action against left-wing groups he accuses of fomenting violence after the killing of conservative activist and Trump ally Charlie Kirk last year.
Outside the U.S., attacks by far-left actors against officials, police, businesses and infrastructure reflect a deliberate, ideologically driven strategy to destabilize free societies, the State Department said in a statement on Wednesday.
"For too long, however, this threat has remained a blind spot in the international community’s counterterrorism focus, underestimated and under-resourced, despite the danger it poses," it said.
Since November, Washington has designated four European groups — Antifa Ost, the Informal Anarchist Federation/International Revolutionary Front, Armed Proletarian Justice and Revolutionary Class Self-Defense — as Foreign Terrorist Organizations, offering rewards of up to $10 million for information on their financing.
Civil liberties groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union, have warned that the far-left terrorism designations could be used to target lawful protest activity and political opponents rather than genuine security threats.
(Reporting by Simon LewisEditing by Rod Nickel)
