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UP MAGAZINE •

BERLIN, FOOTBALL, AND GRAFFITI: Berlin’s Football Crews and their Battles to Claim the City

(Banda Invicta are the main ultra group from BFC Dynamo)
 
“OST OST OST BERLIN” echoes around the stadium in a repetitive, unified chant from the fanatical supporters’ block at BFC Dynamo. I am standing amongst the ultras of BFC Dynamo. Ultras are the name given to the fanatical wings of supporters at a football club. They show their support in extreme ways by chanting all game, making large choreographed displays, waving flags, and occasionally fighting opposition fans. This is Europe’s largest...
Degraded Orbit - Unusual architecture, abandoned p •

URBEX IN DUBLIN - Degraded Orbit

From empty mansions and disused factories to hidden tunnels beneath cities, urbexers – Urban Explorers – uncover the hidden corners of cities, capturing glimpses of the past in buildings frozen in time. For some, it’s about documenting history; for others, it’s the thrill of accessing dangerous, abandoned spaces. For Dublin-based Louis, the man behind the lo.u.rbex account, it’s a bit of both.


As long as there have been abandoned spaces, people have been drawn to explore them. In the 19th cen...
Atlas •

The Strange Links Between Irish and British Far-Right Activists

This article was written by Ethan Rooney as a guest contribution to Atlas News.On August 5th, Irish social media was awash with images that left users in Ireland bewildered and somewhat bemused. The pictures showed a gang of Irish far-right protesters marching alongside British loyalists in Belfast. It was a sight that left many angry and worried—after all, isn’t this an alliance that’s supposed to be impossible? How are Irish ‘patriots’ and British loyalists, historical enemies, suddenly findin...
The Modern Insurgent •

The Birth of Clann Éireann: A Neo-Fascist Movement in Ireland

In April 2024, a prominent figure on the Irish far-right, Justin Barrett, launched Clann Éireann. Clann Éireann, meaning "Irish Family," is a far-right organisation unlike any other seen in modern Ireland. They have distinguished themselves from the many other emerging far-right groups by being more openly fascist, openly militant, and using Nazi iconography. The organisation has stated that it wishes to see all foreigners deported from Ireland regardless of their legal status.(1)

Ireland has s...
Football Paradise •

Torcida Verde - Lisbons Female Ultras

“Sporting Clube de PORTUGAL!!” was something I would get used to having shouted at me during my few days in Lisbon every time I mistakenly used the despised term “Sporting Lisbon.” Many times, during a casual conversation with the Torcida Verde Ultras, I would, through force of habit, stupidly refer to their beloved club as Sporting Lisbon, a name many of us are familiar with and a mistake I’m sure we all make. However, it is not the club’s name and never has been. The supporters of Os Leões (Th...
The Modern Insurgent •

Haiti: Simply Gang Violence or an Organised Insurgency?

On further examination of the situation in Haiti, you'll see that these gangs causing terror across the nation can also be viewed as political insurgents with coherent end goals and even a degree of public support.

Haitian armed gangs have dominated news headlines over the last number of weeks. The stories of Haitian gangs wreaking havoc in the capital, taking over large swathes of Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince, and breaking into prisons to release prisoners have caused concern globally. Howe

Germany's Response to Pro-Palestinian Activities

A planned event called the Palestinian National Congress (PNC) was shut down by police in Berlin on April 12th. The event, initially scheduled for April 12-14, was to be a weekend conference of speeches, workshops, and seminars for pro-Palestinian activists to meet and network. Among the invited guest speakers were Greece’s former finance minister Yanis Varoufakis and Irish MP Richard Boyd Barret. Multiple Palestinian journalists and doctors were also due to attend, including Ghassan Abu Sitteh,

The Case of The Budapest Two

The “Day of Honour” demonstration is a yearly demonstration that takes place in Budapest, Hungary. It commemorates Nazi forces who escaped the Russian encirclement of Budapest at the end of World War II. The demonstration is attended and led by people on the furthest fringes of far-right politics.

History of the Day of Honour Rally:

Neo-Nazis and fascists from all over Europe come to Budapest every year to network and participate in this demonstration, which roughly attracts around 600 people.
The Modern Insurgent •

Spain's Road to Reconciliation: Navigating Post-ETA Challenges

ETA or Euskadi Ta Azkatasuna, meaning 'Basque Homeland and Freedom' were an armed militant group who emerged in 1959 to oppose General Franco's military dictatorship in Spain and try to secede from Spain in order to form an independent Basque state. Franco's regime strongly oppressed the Basque culture, identity and language. The Basque region is a region that covers parts of northern Spain and southern France. Its people have some of the oldest heritage in Europe. They have their own distinct l

Javier Milei’s Drive to Privatise Football Clubs in Argentina. – The Atlantic Dispatch

Argentina’s love affair with football began around 150 years ago when the country was building its vast railway network. Thousands of immigrant workers from Britain came to the country to help construct these railroads. With them, they brought experience and know-how but they also brought their hobbies and pastimes – including football.

As this railroad network developed, football pitches and clubs began springing up all over its line as Argentinian and British workers began playing together. I
Football Paradise •

Atletico Diritti: A Unique Football Revolution

It is one of the most romantic and picturesque settings you can imagine for a football pitch. In the shadow of an ancient Roman aqueduct in the suburbs of Rome suburbs is Atletico Diritti. An amateur sports club and social project, it competes in men’s football, cricket, basketball, and women’s five-a-side football. But their presence and impact extends far beyond what happens on the pitch. The club’s playing roster is made up almost entirely of prisoners, ex-prisoners, and asylum seekers.

Atle
The Modern Insurgent •

Beyond Gaza: Hezbollah's Rising Influence & the Future of Israeli Security | N&A Issue 13

On October 7th 2023, the Israel-Palestine conflict was launched back into global headlines when Hamas launched an attack on Israel, killing more than 1,200 Israelis and taking 200 more as hostages. In response, Israel engaged in a carpet bombing campaign in the Gaza Strip with, according to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, “The clear goal of destroying Hamas's military and governing capabilities.” (8) The measures taken by Israel have gone beyond trying to merely destroy Hamas. As of the begin
The Modern Insurgent •

The Kremlin's Invisible Battalions: The Growing Influence of Private Military Companies

On June 23rd 2023, the world was stunned to hear of an alleged attempted coup taking place in Russia. The Wagner Private Military Company, led by Yevgeny Prigozhin had decided to march on Moscow. Prigozhin had, over the last number of weeks, been releasing videos and posting them online where he heavily criticised the Russian government – in particular defence minister Sergei Shoigu – for incompetent war strategies such as not sending enough supplies to the frontline and sending his Wagner fight
The Modern Insurgent •

PSNI Data Breach & Dissident Republicanism | N&A Issue 9

A serious data leak from the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) has revealed private information about more than 10,000 of its staff. This data leak has been making headlines all across Ireland and the United Kingdom now that it has been revealed that the sensitive information has come into the hands of dissident republican groups, who are opposed to the peace process. On the 8th August, the PSNI briefly published an excel spreadsheet in response to a freedom of information request. A mem
The Modern Insurgent •

Gulen Movement

The Gulen Movement, or Hizmet, is the name given to the global network of followers of Fethullah Gulen, a Turkish Sunni Imam who is currently claiming asylum in The United States. Gulenists are against secularism but believe in a “tolerant Islam” where a society is run by Islamic values but is also open to other cultures and religions. (1) It is also characterised by a belief in forward progress in science, culture and art. At its core it wants to show that Islam can be modern whilst also keepin
The Modern Insurgent •

Earth Liberation Front (ELF)

The Earth Liberation Front (ELF) is a radical environmentalist movement founded in England in 1992. The ELF is a global organisation that doesn't have a formal leadership structure or membership but is instead controlled by decentralised, autonomous, and intensely secretive cells that choose to act in the group's name. The only semi-centralised structure within the ELF is their press office based in the USA in which different cells from around the globe send their communications to be passed on
The Modern Insurgent •

Ulster Defence Association (UDA)

The Ulster Defence Association (UDA) is a loyalist paramilitary group which is based in Northern Ireland. The group was founded in 1971 during the The Troubles in Northern Ireland where loyalists who wanted NI to remain a part of Great Britain fought a conflict against republicans militias and groups such as the IRA (Irish Republican Army) who wanted to unify with The Republic of Ireland. The group was set up in order to counteract Irish Republican Army operations and to defend loyalist neighbou