A US government report on mass attacks has called for communities to intervene quickly when they see warning signs of violence, saying workplace grievances and misogyny are the motivation behind many incidents.
The report, released by the US Secret Service’s National Threat Assessment Centre, analysed 173 mass attacks carried out between January 2016 and December 2020 in public or semi-public places such as businesses, schools or churches.
It was released as the US experienced a particularly deadly start to the new year, with 39 people killed in six mass shootings.
They included one this week in Monterey Park, California, that killed 11 people in a dance hall as they celebrated the Lunar New Year.
“It’s just happening way too often,” said Lina Alathari, the centre’s director, before the report’s release.
The centre defines a mass attack as one in which three or more people — not including the attacker — were harmed.
Ms Alathari said that while the centre had not specifically studied the shootings that took place this week, there are themes seen “over and over again” when analysing mass attacks.
The report is the latest in a series undertaken by the centre to look at the problem of mass attacks.
Almost all the attacks were carried out by one person, 96 per cent of attackers were men, 57 per cent of them were white and the attackers ranged in age from 14 to 87 — with most falling in the 25 to 34 age group.
The report noted that nearly two thirds of attackers exhibited behaviour or communications “that were so concerning, they should have been met with an immediate response".
It said these concerns were often shared with law enforcement, employers, school staff or parents.
But in one fifth of the cases, the concerning behaviour was not relayed to anyone “in a position to respond, demonstrating a continued need to promote and facilitate bystander reporting”.
The report also called for greater attention towards domestic violence and misogyny, noting that nearly half of the attackers studied had a history of domestic violence, misogynistic behaviour or both.
“Though not all who possess misogynistic views are violent, viewpoints that describe women as the enemy or call for violence against women remain a cause for concern,” the report said.
About half of the attacks in the study involved a business location, and attackers often had a prior relationship with the business, as an employee, a customer or a former employer.
The report also noted the role that grievances such as workplace disputes or feuds with neighbours played in mass attacks.
About half the attacks were motivated “in whole or in part by a perceived grievance”, according to the report.
The US Secret Service’s National Threat Assessment Centre report can be downloaded or read in its entirety online.
AP contributed to this report
Farage on Muslim Brotherhood
Nigel Farage told Reform's annual conference that the party will proscribe the Muslim Brotherhood if he becomes Prime Minister.
"We will stop dangerous organisations with links to terrorism operating in our country," he said. "Quite why we've been so gutless about this – both Labour and Conservative – I don't know.
“All across the Middle East, countries have banned and proscribed the Muslim Brotherhood as a dangerous organisation. We will do the very same.”
It is 10 years since a ground-breaking report into the Muslim Brotherhood by Sir John Jenkins.
Among the former diplomat's findings was an assessment that “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” has “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
The prime minister at the time, David Cameron, who commissioned the report, said membership or association with the Muslim Brotherhood was a "possible indicator of extremism" but it would not be banned.
How to avoid crypto fraud
- Use unique usernames and passwords while enabling multi-factor authentication.
- Use an offline private key, a physical device that requires manual activation, whenever you access your wallet.
- Avoid suspicious social media ads promoting fraudulent schemes.
- Only invest in crypto projects that you fully understand.
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Dubai works towards better air quality by 2021
Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.
The municipality plans to have seven mobile air-monitoring stations by 2020 to capture more accurate data in hourly and daily trends of pollution.
These will be on the Palm Jumeirah, Al Qusais, Muhaisnah, Rashidiyah, Al Wasl, Al Quoz and Dubai Investment Park.
“It will allow real-time responding for emergency cases,” said Khaldoon Al Daraji, first environment safety officer at the municipality.
“We’re in a good position except for the cases that are out of our hands, such as sandstorms.
“Sandstorms are our main concern because the UAE is just a receiver.
“The hotspots are Iran, Saudi Arabia and southern Iraq, but we’re working hard with the region to reduce the cycle of sandstorm generation.”
Mr Al Daraji said monitoring as it stood covered 47 per cent of Dubai.
There are 12 fixed stations in the emirate, but Dubai also receives information from monitors belonging to other entities.
“There are 25 stations in total,” Mr Al Daraji said.
“We added new technology and equipment used for the first time for the detection of heavy metals.
“A hundred parameters can be detected but we want to expand it to make sure that the data captured can allow a baseline study in some areas to ensure they are well positioned.”
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House-hunting
Top 10 locations for inquiries from US house hunters, according to Rightmove
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