The Department of Defense on Thursday issued a stern warning to its personnel to steer clear of tomorrow’s demonstration outside the White House protesting the recent spate of fatal police shootings across the country.
A group claiming to be Anonymous is billing the DC demonstration as being part of a “collective day of rage” and “day of solidarity,” with 36 other protests taking place in major cities across the country on Friday night, including one in Manhattan’s Times Square.
“Please be advised the [US Northern Command] has issued a threat advisory informing DOD personnel that a series of protests has been scheduled to be conducted across the United States on July 15, 2016,” reads an advisory issued by the US Army in response to a threatening video posted Wednesday by Anonymous.
The notice mentions that one of the demonstration sites is outside the White House.
“For your personal safety, we highly encourage you to avoid this specific location entirely,” the Army noted.
The advisory to all Army personnel also lists the start times and locations of the protests in cities that include Phoenix, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Miami.
The five-minute-plus video produced by Anonymous shows footage of the fatal police shootings of Alton Sterling in Louisiana and Philando Castile in Minnesota, and the slayings of five officers in Dallas, Texas. A man’s voice is dubbed over the disturbing images.
“Yet, while we do honor these fallen officers, we will not be discouraged. We will not stop until the officers responsible for the deaths of both Alton Sterling and Philando Castile are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” the man says.
“We will not submit to another failure of judgment by those who failed to indict Darren Wilson and prosecute the officers who were involved in the death of Freddie Gray,” the man says.
Officer Wilson fatally shot Michael Brown during an altercation in Ferguson, Missouri, in 2014, but was later exonerated of criminal wrongdoing.
Gray died in Baltimore, Maryland, while in police custody in 2015. Charges against several officers involved in his death have already been dismissed. Other cops in the case are still facing trial.
“The entire global collective of Anonymous are outraged at these vicious murders,” the man’s voiceover continues. “The time has come to draw a line in the sand and say, ‘Enough is enough.’”
“We are infuriated as we watch day after day another human murdered because an irresponsible corrupt system allows free reign to cops that continuously abuse their power,” the man says. “We are calling for a collective day of rage. We must stress the importance of staying non-violent.”
The video makes it clear that the hacker group has “launched attacks” on the “virtual infrastructure” of the police departments involved in the Sterling and Castile shootings.
“To the St. Anthony and Baton Rouge police departments, we have already launched attacks on your virtual infrastructure,” the voiceover warns. “We are prepared to release every single piece of evidence that will expose your corruption and blatant disregard for human life.”