At an Ottawa summit, State Department counterterrorism chief Monica A. Jacobsen urged Europe, Canada and Australia to join the U.S. in treating antifa and other far‑left groups as terrorist threats. The push follows the administration’s 2025 designation of four European leftist organizations.

Jacobsen’s remarks framed left‑wing militants—communists, Marxists, anarchists, anticapitalists and eco‑extremists—as political terrorists. The speech cited clashes in Milan and Italy as proof, despite scant evidence that these groups have targeted U.S. citizens.

Senior counterterrorism director Sebastian Gorka has pushed for broader designations, arguing there are no lone wolves. Critics fear the move could enable surveillance of domestic activists and politicise U.S. counter‑terrorism resources away from higher‑risk threats such as Iran‑related violence.

The State Department offers a $10 million reward for intel on antifa finances, a strategy that may strain FBI and Justice Department teams already stretched by staff changes. This shift could shift funding and legal focus from right‑wing extremism to far‑left groups, with unclear impacts on U.S. security policy.