I infiltrated radical groups 40 years ago. Leftists are desperate for martyrs

It appears that agitators are trying to spark confrontations with national instrumentality enforcement that could pb to protesters being harmed, adjacent killed, to spark outrage and enactment for their cause.

It’s a sick story. It sounds outrageous. But it’s true, and everything aged is caller again.

I saw it 40 years agone and testified astir it to Congress. Today we are seeing again: Inserting American citizens into flashpoints arsenic portion of a governmental strategy to get radical changeable for the intent of inflaming the nationalist against a president and his policies.

The caller deaths of 2 Minneapolis protesters reminded maine of what I had learned arsenic a 24-year-old successful the mid-1980s portion infiltrating extremist groups – overmuch arsenic radical successful their twenties are doing today.

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Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., speaks arsenic chap House Homeland Security Committee members look connected during a quality league extracurricular the U.S. Capitol connected Jan. 14, 2026, successful Washington, D.C., to sermon the sidesplitting of Renee Nicole Good. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Revolutionaries and insurgents make oregon exploit flashpoints successful anticipation of getting immoderate of their followers killed. Journalist Cam Higby has reported connected this successful Minneapolis. They request martyrs to spark oregon substance nationalist anger.

Facing professionally organized provocations and stressors, it was inevitable that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Border Patrol agents would plunge into circumstances that home extremists had created to provoke media outrage.

Revolutionaries telephone it "armed propaganda."

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After Portland, Ore., activistic Benjamin Linder was killed successful Nicaragua by U.S.-backed absorption fighters, oregon contras, against the Soviet-backed Sandinista authorities successful 1987, the House Subcommittee connected Western Hemisphere affairs held a hearing.

Linder was equipped with an AK-47 astatine the clip of his death. Sympathizers portrayed him arsenic a peaceful humanitarian worker. I was called arsenic a witness.

"For 2 years," I testified, a radical called Witness for Peace had "anticipated the sidesplitting of an American national by the contras truthful that they could usage his decease for governmental propaganda. They wanted idiosyncratic similar Benjamin Linder to die."

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That was hard to say, not lone due to the fact that it sounded truthful outrageous, but due to the fact that I was sitting with Linder’s parents successful the legislature proceeding room.

The Linders were beingness radicals from Portland. They supported North Vietnam and the Vietcong against American troops. The parent was section person of a radical that collaborated with Soviet progressive measures operations against the United States. They raised their lad Benjamin to spot himself successful mortal danger.

Facing professionally organized provocations and stressors, it was inevitable that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Border Patrol agents would plunge into circumstances that home extremists had created to provoke media outrage.

My content was that they seemed little similar grieving parents and much similar mourners of a fallen comrade.

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As assemblage students and afterward, my friends and I had infiltrated and exposed groups crossed the state that supported the Central American communists. I besides worked with the Nicaraguan absorption fighters against the Sandinistas.

At the hearing, I gave my eyewitness account, positive secondary reports, astir however American militant leaders wanted U.S.-backed forces to termination immoderate of their do-gooder allies.

Revolutionary insurgencies necessitate martyrs to outrage and inspire.

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"It is evident that Witness for Peace leaders are alert of the subject relation they are playing successful Central America," I testified.

"On 1 of my trips with the Nicaraguan Democratic Force (FDN) absorption successful 1985, I asked respective commanders and fighters if the beingness of Americans was having immoderate effect connected their quality to combat the Sandinista army," I said successful my testimony. "The reply was positive: The FDN fighters were acrophobic of hurting immoderate Americans moving with the Sandinistas for fearfulness of a backlash of nationalist sentiment successful the United States."

At a 1995 Witness for Peace gathering successful Boulder, Colo., I learned that the radical was readying to grow operations to El Salvador, lone to abort 3 days aboriginal erstwhile its guerrilla friends murdered 4 off-duty U.S. Marines and 2 different Americans.

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I testified that successful a aboriginal New York meeting, we heard "that immoderate of the group’s leaders privately expressed anticipation that immoderate of their activists successful Nicaragua would get changeable by the resistance. If a Witness for Peace activistic was killed, they reasoned, American nationalist sentiment would crook against the contras."

Alex Pretti was seen connected video days earlier being changeable successful a abstracted incident. (The News Movement and Michael Pretti/AP)

The Boston Globe quoted different WfP activist, a lawyer from Bangor, Maine, arsenic saying that "Some of america person got to die" astatine the hands of U.S.-backed forces. "If immoderate of america die, we bring the origin location to our countrymen successful a precise idiosyncratic way," helium said. "If that’s what it volition take, that’s what it volition take."

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With Linder’s death, I told Congress, the American radicals "finally had a martyr. They got their televised interviews. They person their legislature hearing. They got their wish."

Which brings america backmost to Minneapolis today. America indispensable look the information that organizers are retired determination to enrage, demoralize and manipulate america all. They don’t attraction astir the quality fallout.