Latest news with #Vidal-Quadras
Epoch Times
14-05-2025
- Epoch Times
Europe Wrestles With Rise in Recruitment of Youngsters to Carry Out Violence
The European Union police force (Europol) recently launched an operational task force to 'tackle the rising trend of violence-as-a-service' and the recruitment of young people by organized crime syndicates. 'Violence-as-a-service refers to the outsourcing of violent acts to criminal service providers,' Europol said in its April 29 The agency said the crime often involves 'the use of young perpetrators to carry out threats, assaults, or killings for a fee.' 'Investigations show that these acts are often orchestrated remotely, with young people recruited and instructed online,' Europol said. Because the youth are hired by anonymous recruiters, hiding behind apps, the police are often unable to trace and prosecute them for any violence perpetrated. Joris van der Aa, a crime reporter with the Gazet van Antwerpen in Belgium, said the announcement from Europol was 'alarming' but not a surprise. Related Stories 5/12/2025 5/9/2025 'There is no doubt crime-as-a-service has become a thing in recent years,' he told The Epoch Times. 'Young guys are being recruited on Snapchat, Telegram and Discord to carry out petrol bomb attacks and last-minute cocaine transactions,' van der Aa said. The Europol task force, known as OTF GRIMM, is being led by Sweden, and comprises police forces from Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Norway, and the Netherlands, all of whom have experienced a growth in contract killings, and other forms of violence and vandalism carried out by young freelancers. Warning About TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat A Swedish government website published a 'Criminal networks may make the first contact with a child by following them through apps like TikTok, Instagram or Snapchat. They often ask the child to download encrypted messaging services such as Signal or Telegram,' the warning said. It said the organized crime networks often paid teenagers through Swish, a mobile payment app popular in Sweden. In March, Hugo Kaaman, a researcher monitoring Sweden's gang violence, told The Epoch Times that 'Most of the people ordering hits are hiding abroad and actively advertise the opportunity to kill someone on social media for $5,000 to $20,000, and there are even young kids willing to do it for free, just for the clout,' he said. A Spanish politician and former vice president of the European Parliament, Alejo Vidal-Quadras, has described the financial incentives offered to young people to carry out crimes of violence as 'repulsive.' Vidal-Quadras, 79, was shot at point-blank range in Madrid on Nov. 9, 2023, but miraculously survived. In November 2024 he said during an online conference that the Iranian regime was In a May 5 interview with The Epoch Times, Vidal-Quadras said he is not surprised by reports of organized criminals hiring people online to commit acts of violence. He believes the Iranian regime uses different ways to carry out violence in Europe. 'One is outsourcing, hiring mafias to do it,' he said. 'Another way is online messages to recruit young people and to radicalize them and transform them into their instruments.' He said young people are being converted to 'radical Islam on the web.' Vidal-Quadras called it 'particularly cruel.' 'Because a young boy of 15, 16, 17, is not yet able to rationalize things properly, so they are easy victims of this kind of psychological pressure.' Vidal-Quadras said it appears youths, without political motives, are also carrying out violent acts for money. 'Gamification Strategies' Europol's 2025 Serious and Organized Crime Threat Assessment states, 'Young perpetrators are frequently exploited in several criminal markets and in several roles.' The Young people are also recruited to store drugs and weapons, and to deal narcotics—and now they're being recruited for acts of violence. 'Criminals use tactics to lure young people, including tailored language, coded communication, and gamification strategies,' the report adds. 'Investigations show that there is a demand from the criminal realm for young perpetrators, but also that there is a supply of such perpetrators willing and looking for assignments to participate in violent acts.' But it is not just acts of violence that young people are being recruited to carry out. Image of Richard Ehemiere - who was later convicted of blackmailing teenage girls after being recruited on Discord - is arrested at his home in Hackney, London in April 2021. National Crime Agency On May 1, Britain's National Crime Agency Ehiemere was given a suspended prison sentence at Snaresbrook Crown Court in London, on May 1, after being convicted of fraud and indecent images of children. The National Crime Agency said it had been tipped off in January 2021 by staff at Discord, who were concerned about the activities of a group called CVLT, which appeared to have recruited Ehiemere.
Shafaq News
24-04-2025
- Politics
- Shafaq News
Netherlands summons Iranian Ambassador over alleged assassination attempts
Shafaq News/ The Netherlands summoned the Iranian ambassador on Thursday after its intelligence agency accused Tehran of orchestrating two assassination attempts targeting Iranian dissidents in Europe. According to its annual report, the Dutch General Intelligence and Security Service (AIVD) said two men were arrested in June 2024 in the city of Haarlem in connection with an attempt to assassinate an Iranian national residing in the Netherlands. One of the suspects is also believed to be linked to a separate attempt to kill Spanish politician Alejo Vidal-Quadras, a vocal critic of Iran, in Madrid in November 2023. "The two assassination attempts follow a pattern long associated with Iran's actions abroad—relying on criminal networks in Europe to silence perceived opponents of the regime," the AIVD stated. "Intelligence indicates a strong likelihood that Iran is behind both plots." Vidal-Quadras, a former vice president of the European Parliament and co-founder of Spain's far-right Vox party, survived a shooting last year. He has since accused the Iranian government of targeting him due to his outspoken support for Iranian opposition groups. The Dutch Foreign Ministry confirmed that it had summoned Iran's ambassador in response to the intelligence findings. As of Thursday evening, Tehran had not issued a public response to the allegations.
Asharq Al-Awsat
24-04-2025
- Politics
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Netherlands Summons Iranian Ambassador over Alleged Assassination Attempts
Iran's ambassador to the Netherlands was summoned on Thursday after the Dutch intelligence agency said it suspected Tehran of being behind two assassination attempts in Europe, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said. The Dutch general intelligence agency, known as the AIVD, said in its annual report published on Thursday that two men were arrested in June 2024 in the Dutch town of Haarlem after an assassination attempt there on an Iranian residing in the country. One of the suspects is also suspected of the failed assassination attempt on Spanish politician and Iran critic Alejo Vidal-Quadras in Madrid in November 2023, Reuters quoted it as saying. "The two assassination attempts fit into the modus operandi that Iran has been using for years: using criminal networks in Europe to silence purported opponents of the regime. Based on intelligence, it is likely that Iran is responsible for the two liquidation attempts," the AIVD said. Several months after surviving the shooting attack, Vidal-Quadras, who co-founded the Spanish far-right party Vox, said he believed that Iran's government had hired hitmen to assassinate him over his links to an Iranian dissident group, without providing evidence of the assertion.
Reuters
24-04-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
Netherlands summons Iranian ambassador over alleged assassination attempts
THE HAGUE, April 24 (Reuters) - Iran's ambassador to the Netherlands was summoned on Thursday after the Dutch intelligence agency said it suspected Tehran of being behind two assassination attempts in Europe, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said. The Dutch general intelligence agency, known as the AIVD, said in its annual report published on Thursday that two men were arrested in June 2024 in the Dutch town of Haarlem after an assassination attempt there on an Iranian residing in the country. One of the suspects is also suspected of the failed assassination attempt on Spanish politician and Iran critic Alejo Vidal-Quadras in Madrid in November 2023, it said. "The two assassination attempts fit into the modus operandi that Iran has been using for years: using criminal networks in Europe to silence purported opponents of the regime. Based on intelligence, it is likely that Iran is responsible for the two liquidation attempts," the AIVD said. Several months after surviving the shooting attack, Vidal-Quadras, who co-founded the Spanish far-right party Vox, said he believed that Iran's government had hired hitmen to assassinate him over his links to an Iranian dissident group, without providing evidence of the assertion.
Straits Times
24-04-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
Netherlands summons Iranian ambassador over alleged assassination attempts
THE HAGUE - Iran's ambassador to the Netherlands was summoned on Thursday after the Dutch intelligence agency said it suspected Tehran of being behind two assassination attempts in Europe, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said. The Dutch general intelligence agency, known as the AIVD, said in its annual report published on Thursday that two men were arrested in June 2024 in the Dutch town of Haarlem after an assassination attempt there on an Iranian residing in the country. One of the suspects is also suspected of the failed assassination attempt on Spanish politician and Iran critic Alejo Vidal-Quadras in Madrid in November 2023, it said. "The two assassination attempts fit into the modus operandi that Iran has been using for years: using criminal networks in Europe to silence purported opponents of the regime. Based on intelligence, it is likely that Iran is responsible for the two liquidation attempts," the AIVD said. Several months after surviving the shooting attack, Vidal-Quadras, who co-founded the Spanish far-right party Vox, said he believed that Iran's government had hired hitmen to assassinate him over his links to an Iranian dissident group, without providing evidence of the assertion. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
