Vienna: Some radical activists who reject Covid vaccine and anti-virus steps cross the border to join protests where extremist ideology is spreading, the new Austrian domestic intelligence head told AFP, mentioning the “very scary” trend.
Omar Haijawi-Pirchner said foreign activists traveled to Austria where the Covid vaccine would be composed next month to show and hold “network meetings with their partners, right-wing extremists”.
He added that right-wing extremists often use meetings to spread their ideology, including anti-Semitism, and that “we see many very radicalized people”.
From France to the Netherlands to Germany and Belgium, European countries have been rocked by anti-vaccine protests in recent months, as the government flopped on those who were not vaccinated.
In Austria, tens of thousands have been taken to the streets almost every week because the government said the Covid vaccine would be mandatory from 4.
February 4.
Haijawi-Pirchner, 41, which took over the Austrian DSN intelligence agency just reformed in December, said radicalization Some international activists and dimensions that are increasingly protested are “very, very frightening for us”.
While DSN was not responsible for the collection of foreign intelligence, he had received information pointing to a large number of well-organized activists in Germany and Switzerland, Haijawi-Pirchner told AFP in his first interview with foreign media since his appointment.
He said DSN had seen the threat of credible violence in Austria, appointed clash with police on the sidelines of protests.
There is “many people threaten current critical infrastructure,” including the media, health facilities and politicians, he said.
– Russian-related scandal – DSN that Haijawi-Pirchner Lead replaced the former BVT agent as part of a vast intelligence reform.
The BVT’s reputation was tarnished by the string of what Haijawi-Pirchner secretly refers to the “incident” in recent years.
This includes a raid on the BVT ordered by the interior minister who was far later Herbert Kickl in 2018 and embarrassing charges of Austrian officials leaked information to Russia.
This, along with the closeness felt with the Moscow Party Freedom Party (FPOE), causing reports that other Western institutions refrain from sharing intelligence with Vienna.
Haijawi-Pirchner has come to DSN from a successful police career in the lower Austrian region and emphasizing the agency is a new start.
He said he had “many communication with our partners” in other countries in recent months.
The current level of sharing information shows that some beliefs have returned, he said, but “we fully realize that this rebuilding process” will take months or years.
Intelligence reform means that DSN is now a “hybrid” service which includes intelligence and police work, Haijawi-Pirchner’s structure has been well received among Austrian allies.
Shake-up also aims to deal with what Haijawi-Pirchner received was a failure around the deadly jihadist attack on November 2020 in Vienna, who followed a warning that was missed about the activities of the perpetrators.
Haijawi-Pirchner said reform had caused better communication between security services.
“You can never avoid terrorist attacks by 100 percent,” he said.
But “DSN is better prepared for such a situation than BVT”, he added.