SAN FRANCISCO: Organisations of American Muslims have expressed concern over a new government report on “homegrown terrorism” which claims that the threat posed by “violent Islamist extremists” now comes increasingly from within the US.

The report titled ‘Violent Islamist extremism, the internet, and the homegrown terrorist threat’ has been released by Senator Lieberman, Chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee and Senator Susan Collins, a member of the committee.

“No longer is the threat just from abroad, as was the case with the attacks of September 11, 2001; the threat is now increasingly from within, from homegrown terrorists who are inspired by “violent Islamist ideology” to plan and execute attacks where they live,” the report said.

Four leading Arab-American and Muslim-American advocacy groups, in a joint letter to the two senators, have expressed deep concern over the report that heavily relies on a widely criticised and deeply flawed New York Police Department study on domestic radicalisation that claimed that typical “signatures” of radicalisation include wearing traditional clothing, growing beard, or giving up cigarettes, drinking, and gambling.

The groups which sent the letter are: American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), Muslim Advocates and Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC).

“Perhaps most disturbing is the fact that the report relies upon a now-discredited 2007 report by the New York Police Department that recommends particular scrutiny of American Muslims and Arab-Americans,” said Kareem Shora, executive director of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC).