Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Lebanese Ministry of Health: One person was killed in an Israeli airstrike on a car in the town of Burj Qalawieh, south Lebanon.
Al Mayadeen correspondent: The first ship of the Maghreb fleet delivering aid to break the siege on Gaza departs from the port of Gammarth in Tunisia.
Channel 12: Airspace closed at Ramon Airport due to fears of drone infiltration
IOF Spokesperson: Sirens sounded over an aircraft infiltration in the Bir Ora area, and details are being examined
Drone infiltration sirens sound north of the Gulf of Aqaba
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in Gaza: The Israeli occupation carried out five extremely violent raids on the western areas of Gaza City
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in Gaza: The Israeli occupation carried out major bombings in the Gaza Strip, the most violent since October 7
Yemeni Armed Forces spokesperson Brigadier General Yahya Saree: The missile force carried out a major operation using the Palestine 2 ballistic hypersonic missile, hitting several targets in occupied Yafa.
Sirens sound in large areas of occupied Palestine after a missile launch from Yemen was detected
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: 14 martyrs arrive at al-Shifa Hospital following Israeli massacre of al-Sultan Family north of Gaza.

US Marines got NSA positions after taking part in Jan. 6 riots

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: The Intercept
  • 7 Feb 2023 16:20
  • 1 Shares
4 Min Read

Three US Marines were given promotions and new positions in liaison battalions with the NSA after they participated in the January 6 riots.

  • x
  • Rioters loyal to US President Donald Trump rally at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Jan. 6, 2021 (AP).
    Rioters loyal to US President Donald Trump rally at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Jan. 6, 2021 (AP).

Sergeant Joshua Abate, a marine charged for his alleged participation in the US Capitol riots on January 6, 2021, had been transferred, on assignment, to the Marine Cryptologic Batallion at the National Security Agency headquarters (NSA).

The NSA is one of the US's most sensitive intelligence institutions and the Marine Cryptologic Batallion is a liaison between the Marines and the NSA at Fort Meade.

Though Abate confessed, last summer, that he had engaged in the January 6 Riots, he was not charged until last month.

Not a punishment, a promotion

Alongside Abate, two other marines were charged for taking part in the Capitol riots, however, the two others were also transferred on intelligence assignments according to a report by The Intercept.

Marine Corps sergeant Dodge Dale Hellonen was assigned to the 3rd Marine Raider Support Battalion, which provides intelligence, general, and combat support to the Marine Forces Special Operations Command at Camp LeJeune, North Carolina.

Similarly, Corporal Micah Coomer was assigned to the Marines 1st Radio Battalion, which provides Signals Intelligence (SIGINT), Electronic Warfare (EW), and Computer Network Exploitation (CNE) for the Marine Expeditionary Force, part of the Marine Air-Ground Task Force, based in Camp Pendleton, California. 

Initially, the Marine Corps. did not offer much information concerning the three marines, but an investigation by The Intercept revealed that they all received new assignments and even promotions.

The fight over right-wing radicals in the military

The reassignments raise massive new concerns regarding the military and intelligence communities' capacity to recognize right-wing radicals among their ranks.

Related News

US, China to resume talks in Madrid; tariffs, TikTok on agenda

China warns Philippines against provocations in South China Sea

While earlier, the Pentagon stated that it has been working to ferret out radicals since the Capitol riots, there have been "few signs that the problem has yet been reduced or even that the scale of the threat has been adequately measured." Furthermore, the Pentagon's efforts are now being hampered by House Republicans, who are attempting to obstruct efforts to remove right-wing radicals from the military.

Republicans are threatening to go after what they term "woke" practices at the Pentagon now that they control the House. According to The Intercept, that would include the ongoing attempts to drive out right-wing radicals.

While Pentagon leaders have spoken openly about the problem of right-wing extremism in the military, the US intelligence community has been significantly more diplomatic about it, the report highlighted.

Although intelligence authorities have reported on the growing threat presented by white nationalism and right-wing domestic terrorism, there is insufficient publicly available information on the magnitude of the issue among its ranks, and no evidence that it is taking considerable action to prevent the spread of extremism within its own agencies.

It is worth noting that the three Marines are not the first with ties to the intelligence agency to face charges in connection with the January 6 attack. 

The three men were friends at the time of the riots, and were assigned to the Marine Corps Information Operations Center in Quantico, Virginia. 

Interviews and court records seem to indicate that it took detectives some time to pin Abate, Hellonen, and Coomer down over their January 6 riots involvement.

Read more: Oath keepers’ Rhodes guilty of seditious conspiracy in Jan. 6 attack

Coomer waits for 'boogaloo'

Coomer was, according to the report, the first among the men to be identified by the FBI.

On August 13, 2021, a federal search warrant was served to Facebook authorizing the search of the Instagram account of “mrcoomer08.”

The Intercept highlighted that "Coomer had posted photos from inside the Capitol on January 6 to his personal account." The captions revealed the extent of his radicalism. On the January 6 post, he wrote “Glad to be apart [sic] of history.”

More significantly, on January 31, 2021, Coomer wrote that “everything in this country is corrupt. We honestly need a fresh restart. I’m waiting for the boogaloo.”

When asked by another Instagram user, according to the FBI complaint, what a "boogaloo" is, Coomer replied with "Civil War 2". 

Read more: Neo Nazi leader arrested for planning a Baltimore power grid attack

  • United States
  • January 6 attack
  • US Marines
  • Capitol Riots
  • Jan 6
  • NSA
  • Capitol attack

Most Read

The damaged building in the Katara neighborhood, Doha, Qatar, September 9, 2025 (Social media)

Hamas delegation survives Israeli assassination attempt in Qatar

  • Politics
  • 9 Sep 2025
Israeli police and rescue teams respond at the scene of a shooting attack where several people killed and injured in Jerusalem, Monday, Sept. 8, 2025 (AP)

Al-Quds shooting: 7 settlers killed, several critically injured

  • Politics
  • 8 Sep 2025
Pro-"Israel" conservative Charlie Kirk shot during Utah speech

Pro-'Israel' far-right Charlie Kirk shot dead during Utah speech

  • US & Canada
  • 11 Sep 2025
Uprising against Volker Turk at the Human Rights Council over Gaza.

Uprising against Volker Turk at the Human Rights Council over Gaza

  • Politics
  • 12 Sep 2025

Coverage

All
The Ummah's Martyrs

Read Next

All
People protest against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly, in New York, on Friday, September 27, 2024 (AP)
Politics

'Israel' stops unfunded diplomacy ahead of UN, October 7 memorial

An Israeli Air Force fighter jet releases flares over the Gaza Strip, is seen from southern occupied Palestine, Thursday, May 8, 2025 (AP)
Politics

OIC summit draft: Israeli attack on Qatar risks normalization

People shout slogans and hold Palestinian flags while protesting during the twenty-first stage of La Vuelta cycling race from Alalpardo to Madrid, Spain, Sunday, Sept. 14, 2025. (AP)
Sports

Pro-Palestine protests force abrupt end to Vuelta a España finale

Damage is seen after an Israeli strike targeted a compound that hosted Hamas' political leadership in Doha, Qatar, on Wednesday, September 10, 2025 (AP)
Politics

Israeli regime faces growing isolation over Qatar strike: Reports

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS