U.S. officials have warned that foreign terrorist groups may try to target LGBT events around the world during Pride Month in June.
Authorities warned U.S. citizens abroad to “be more cautious.”
“Please remain vigilant in areas frequented by tourists, including Pride celebrations,” the warning from the U.S. State Department said.
The advisory was issued on Friday, a week after U.S. law enforcement agencies issued a similar alert.
“Foreign terrorist groups or sponsors may seek to exploit additional gatherings associated with the upcoming Pride Month in June 2024,” the FBI and DHS said.
Although the warning did not mention specific gatherings or locations, law enforcement agencies noted that information distributed in English by the Islamic State (IS) group in February 2023 contained LGBTQI+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) critics, skeptics and intersex people).
During Pride Month in June 2016, a man inspired by IS ideology shot and killed 49 people and wounded 53 others at Pulse, a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida.
The FBI and DHS warning also noted that three IS supporters were arrested for attempting to attack the 2023 Pride Parade in Vienna, Austria.
The Countering Extremism Project, a New York-based nonprofit organization, noted that anti-LGBTQ ideas have been embraced by Islamists and far-right extremists.
“It’s no surprise that neo-Nazis and jihadists often express mutual admiration for their shared anti-gay vision,” Mark D Wallace, the project’s chief executive, said in a statement.
Some experts and research institutions say that in recent years, protests and threats against LGBTQ people from local groups in the United States have also increased.
At least 145 incidents of anti-LGBTQ violence, harassment and vandalism occurred during Pride Month 2023, according to reports from the Anti-Defamation League and Glaad (formerly the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation).
