"In the field of political extremism, there was a worsening of the threat posed by these sectors, especially in the context of the far right", warns the document delivered today by the government to the Assembly of the Republic.

According to the 2023 report prepared by the Internal Security System, after a period of stagnation, the traditional organizations and militants of the neo-Nazi and identitarian sectors "resumed their activity, promoting street actions and other initiatives with propaganda purposes".

"In parallel, projects and organizations were also created by young people who extend the reach of the extremist message to a new generation with a distinct profile", adds the RASI in the national analysis for the last year.

This growth of the far right, namely among the younger generations, was largely due to the "effort developed in the virtual sphere", which constituted the "main vehicle for the dissemination of propaganda and a driver of radicalization", refers the document.

This use of digital media thus contributed to the proliferation of extremist narratives, which reach a wider and more diverse audience, adds the RASI, warning that the virtual environment has also been the "main breeding ground for 'accelerationists', radicalized by exposure to propaganda, by the violent universe of 'gaming' or even by contact with militants from other geographies, some associated with terrorist cells or groups".

'Accelerationism' is a trend associated with the far right that advocates an "acceleration" of capitalism and chaos to "overthrow" the existing order.

As for the far left, the document indicates that the anarchist and autonomous movement also resumed street activity in 2023, after a period of stagnation, associating itself with mass demonstrations around causes that are transversal to Portuguese society, such as the right to housing or the improvement of living conditions.

However, these movements have imprinted an "anti-capitalist ideological stamp", resorting to acts of vandalism and provocations against the security forces that aimed to "mobilize the other participants for a fight against the system".

In the last quarter of 2023, the Palestinian cause was also supported by these sectors, through participation in demonstrations, but without any record of relevant incidents, refers the report delivered to parliament.

Similar to what was seen internationally, it was in the anti-capitalist environmental movement that a greater radicalization was observed, through the repeated use of illegal actions and acts of vandalism, as well as an "attempt to sabotage a critical infrastructure".

"The environmental cause continued to prove fundamental for the recruitment of young people for different sectors of the far left", emphasizes the RASI, adding that, in relation to the anti-system movements that emerged during the covid-19 pandemic, "they lost almost all relevance" in 2023.

Regarding the analysis of a "terrorist threat of Islamist origin", some international events -- such as acts of desecration of the Koran and the tension in the Middle East -- also "had some echo within the Islamic communities" in Portugal.

Although no concrete evidence has been collected on the planning of terrorist attacks, "specific cases of apology for Hamas and the attacks against Israel and, likewise, hostile reactions to the desecration of the Koran" have been identified, it adds.

The current international situation "favors the development of radicalization processes with a propensity for violence, which could result in the execution of terrorist attacks, and Portugal is not immune to this phenomenon", warns the document.

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