Activists of the far-left Antifa movement began planning to foment a nationwide anti-government insurgency as early as November as the U.S. presidential campaign season kicked off in earnest, according to a law enforcement official with access to intelligence behind the shadowy group.
The radical movement has emerged as a key focus for investigators in the wake of violent protests and looting across the country after the death of George Floyd in police custody in Minneapolis, according to U.S. law enforcement officials and private security experts.
The law enforcement official would not speak on the record about Antifa’s plans as the election season heats up, but longtime analysts of the group say such a move would be entirely in character.
More generally, senior Trump administration officials and private analysts are warning that the radicals have rushed to exploit recent anti-police protests to set into motion a program of widespread civil unrest, a program that involves using the protests for looting and burning inner cities with the help of criminals and street gangs.
Far from a centrally organized movement, Antifa is a shadowy “anti-fascist” political front of loosely organized, quasi-underground activists known for wearing black-clad outfits and masks who see destructive street violence as a political tool.
In recent days, the group interspersed its operatives among protests set off by the police killing of a handcuffed Mr. Floyd.
Mr. Trump has singled out Antifa for the violent protests. The president said Monday that “in recent days, our nation has been gripped by professional anarchists, violent mobs, arsonists, looters, criminals, rioters, Antifa and others.”
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