The boss of the New York counterterrorism said Thursday, January 14 that the United States needs new laws in the face of the threat posed by extremists and "
domestic terrorists
", such as those who led the assault on the Capitol. January 6th.
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"
We do not have laws against domestic terrorism comparable to what we have against international terrorism
," said John Miller during a press briefing.
So far, he noted, “
we Americans have been very reluctant ... to discontinue constitutionally protected activities.
But I believe we need to revisit the issue for groups operating in the United States (...) with the idea of overthrowing the government by violence.
One should not have to go through a list of articles of law to find the one that corresponds to a misdemeanor.
There should be a comprehensive text covering internal terrorist organizations
”.
"
Those who thought it was not a good idea two weeks ago should probably think about it again now,
”he added.
To fight against threats from al-Qaida or the Islamic State group, classified as a "
foreign terrorist organization
", US laws allow law enforcement to prosecute anyone who provides them with the slightest material support.
An American can thus be prosecuted if he discusses on a forum of the Islamic State group, but not if he exchanges with a neo-Nazi group located in the United States, even if he is in the process of building up an arsenal.
Analysts have stressed in recent days that the United States is less well armed against the threat of violence from the far-right than against the jihadists.
As of Tuesday, 70 people had already been indicted in connection with the violence on the Capitol, and 170 suspects identified.
The justice ministry said it expected “
hundreds
” of indictments in the coming months.
Authorities fear further violence ahead of Joe Biden's inauguration ceremony on January 20.
Washington is crisscrossed by police and military, and all American states have been called upon to strengthen the security of their respective Capitol, where their local parliament sits.