Beautiful Virgin Islands

Monday, Aug 04, 2025

Concern for UK security as anti-vaxxer groups evolve towards US-style militias

Concern for UK security as anti-vaxxer groups evolve towards US-style militias

Counter-terrorism officials are monitoring movement amid military-style training and lurch towards violent extremism

Counter-terrorism officials and police are increasingly concerned over the trajectory of the UK’s anti-vaxxer movement as it evolves towards violent extremism and the formation of US-style militias.

Boris Johnson is among those receiving direct security updates on individuals prepared to “undermine national health security”.

The movement’s more extreme elements are recruiting and strategising over the encrypted social media messaging app Telegram, with one UK anti-vaxxer channel asking for “men of integrity” to “fight for our children’s future”.

Anti-vaxxers have targeted scores of schools and recently stormed a Covid testing site. They were led by Britain’s most visible activist, Piers Corbyn, who subsequently urged people to burn down the offices of MPs who backed new restrictions.

Health experts warn that their false claims have had an impact on the vaccination programme, with Chris Whitty, England’s chief medical officer, blaming “misinformation” for vaccine hesitancy.

Among the government organisations now mobilised to monitor the anti-vaxx movement are the Home Office’s office for security and counter-terrorism (OSCT) and its research, information and communications unit (Ricu) which covers public safety issues, including counter-terrorism.

Also tasked with documenting the anti-vaxx threat is the Home Office’s counter-extremism analysis and insight (CEAI) programme, whose work informs strategic and operational decisions, as does its extremism analysis unit (EAU), and the counter-disinformation unit, which is part of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.

Latest intelligence assessments describe the anti-vaxxer movement as ostensibly a conveyor belt, delivering fresh recruits to extremist groups, including racially and ethnically motivated violent extremist organisations.

“It’s a growing concern and it is being monitored at the highest level,” said the Whitehall source. “No 10 is among those getting the reports direct: the PM is seeing them in his inbox. The consensus is that we didn’t win [the disinformation war] as cleanly as we need to do next time.”

Of chief concern is that Britain’s anti-vaxx conspiracists are moving offline, with the UK-based Alpha Men Assemble (AMA) group organising military-style training in preparation for what it has termed a “war” on the government and its Covid policies.

Recent posts from the AMA’s official Telegram channel, which has 7,000 subscribers, encourage members to adopt anti-surveillance techniques by using “burner phones” and advise people to “communicate off line” with CB and ham radios.

Other posts seen by the Observer promise supporters that “you will be taught self-defence at each AMA meeting” with “professional men” and told to “aquire [sic] a black style uniform”.

Ciaran O’Connor, analyst at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD), a London-based thinktank studying extremism, said AMA had many similarities with US anti-government militia groups and it was clear it hoped to create a type of paramilitary force.

Stewart Rhodes, leader of a US extremist militia, was charged with seditious conspiracy over the 6 January Capitol attack.


Last Thursday, the leader of a US extremist militia, the Oath Keepers, was charged with seditious conspiracy over the 6 January Capitol attack.

The AMA is also openly seeking UK veterans, an approach that overlaps with US militia activities. Telegram messages suggest a number of ex-service personnel have already joined. One, referencing a scene from the dystopian film The Matrix, calls himself a “red pilled veteran”. Another states: “I’m English. Ex RAF. My mission statement was a ‘force for good’. I believed in that.”

Another group, Veterans 4 Freedom, and which is understood to have around 200 members, has hosted Telegram conversations referring to a violent insurrection in which vaccination centres are targeted.

Milo Comerford, ISD’s head of research and policy, added: “Governments across Europe and North America are struggling with the growing prominence of a set of highly ideologically eclectic movements emerging at the intersection of Covid conspiracy and extremism.

“Traditional counter-extremism policy paradigms are geared towards threats from organised groups with clear political objectives. However, these loose online conspiracy movements represent a much more ‘hybridised’ challenge, not just to public safety, but also to rights and democratic institutions.”

Imran Ahmed, chief executive of the Center for Countering Digital Hate, which briefs UK officials on the evolving anti-vaxx threat, said: “We’re seeing the convergence of anti-vaxxers into other fringe movements.

“They’re adopting what they have learned about marketing strategies and communications, when they have sought new markets and how to converge their audiences and hybridise their ideologies, similar to the way the ‘great reset’ has replaced QAnon as the cohering conspiracy narrative for fringe elements.”

Comerford cited recent data from Prevent, the UK government’s counter-extremism programme, that reveals one of the fastest-growing extremism challenges in the UK are “mixed, unclear and unstable” (MUU) threats, ideological drivers of extremist violence beyond the traditional categories of far-right and Islamist extremism.

Ahmed added that the prominence of figures such as Piers Corbyn at UK anti-vaxxer and anti-lockdown rallies alongside far-right supporters articulated the coming together of traditionally opposed ideologies.

Despite their attempts to quash online coronavirus disinformation, Whitehall officials are dismayed that prominent anti-vaxxers are still hosted on platforms such as Instagram, Facebook and Telegram, reaching almost 1.5 million people. The most popular use the name of David Icke, a high-profile British conspiracy theorist who promotes the false belief that coronavirus is spread by 5G.

Internationally, protests and demonstrations against coronavirus lockdowns, so-called health passports and vaccine mandates have turned violent.

Throughout Europe, an anti-vaxx ecosystem has prompted real-world violence. In Italy, anti-vaxxers linked up with far-right gangs to plan an attack involving explosives. Last month, German police foiled a plot that involved anti-vaxxer violent extremists allegedly targeting a high-profile politician.

The Home Office has been contacted for comment.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Pilots Call for Mental Health Support Without Stigma
All Five Trapped Miners Found Dead After El Teniente Mine Collapse
Ong Beng Seng Pleads Guilty in Corruption Case Linked to Former Singapore Transport Minister
BP’s Largest Oil and Gas Find in 25 Years Uncovered Offshore Brazil
Italy Fines Shein One Million Euros for Misleading Sustainability Claims
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
Declassified Annex Links Soros‑Affiliated Officials and Clinton Campaign to ‘Russiagate’ Narrative
UK's Online Safety Law: A Front for Censorship
Nationwide Protests Erupt in Brazil Demanding Presidential Resignation
Parents Abandon Child at Barcelona Airport Over Passport Issue
Mystery Surrounds Death of Brazilian Woman with iPhones Glued to Her Body
Bus Driver Discovers Toddler Hidden in Suitcase in New Zealand
Switzerland Celebrates 734 Years of Independence Amid Global Changes
U.S. Opens Official Investigation into Former Trump Prosecutor Jack Smith
Leaked audio of Canada's new PM Mark Carney admitting the truth about the Net Zero agenda: "We're gonna make a lot of money off of this."
China Enforces Comprehensive Ban on Cryptocurrency Activities
Absolutely 100% Realistic EVO Series Doll by EXDOLL (Chinese Company) used mainly for carnal purposes
World Economic Forum founder Klaus Schwab: "In this new world, we must accept... total transparency. You have to get used to it. You have to behave accordingly. But if you have nothing to hide, you shouldn't be afraid."
Meet Mufti Hamid Patel, head of Office for Standards in Education in Pakistan
George Soros tells the World Economic Forum: "President Trump is a con man and the ultimate narcissist, who wants the world to revolve around him."
Hamas are STARVING the hostages.
Decline in Tourism in Majorca Amidst Ongoing Anti-Tourism Protests
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
Poland Begins Excavation at Dziemiany After New Clue to World War II‑Era Nazi Treasure
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Threatens Canada with Tariffs Over Palestinian State Recognition
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Trump Sues Murdoch in “Heavyweight Bout”: Lawsuit Over Alleged Epstein Letter Sets Stage for Courtroom Showdown
Germany Enters Fiscal Crisis as Cabinet Approves €174 Billion in New Debt
Trump Administration Finalizes Broad Tariff Increases on Global Trade Partners
J.K. Rowling Limits Public Engagements Citing Safety Fears
JD.com Launches €2.2 Billion Bid for German Electronics Retailer Ceconomy
Azerbaijan Proceeds with Plan to Legalise Casinos on Artificial Islands
Former Judge Charged After Drunk Driving Crash Kills Comedian in Brazil
Jeff Bezos hasn’t paid a dollar in taxes for decades. He makes billions and pays $0 in taxes, LEGALLY
China Increases Use of Exit Bans Amid Rising U.S. Tensions
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Procter & Gamble to Raise U.S. Prices to Offset One‑Billion‑Dollar Tariff Cost
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
Botswana Seeks Controlling Stake in De Beers as Anglo American Prepares Exit
Trump Administration Proposes Repeal of Obama‑Era Endangerment Finding, Dismantling Regulatory Basis for CO₂ Emissions Limits
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
A family has been arrested in the UK for displaying the British flag
Mel Gibson refuses to work with Robert De Niro, saying, "Keep that woke clown away from me."
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
The British propaganda channel BBC News lies again.
Deputy attorney general's second day of meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell has concluded
Controversial March in Switzerland Features Men Dressed in Nazi Uniforms
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
×