AWD operates as a network of localized cells, each containing several individuals. AWD operates with a highly decentralized structure in the United States. AWD remained largely covert until January 2018, when one of its members was arrested for a hate crime after murdering a gay Jewish college student. The name “Atomwaffen” is German for “nuclear weapons.” The group was initially composed of teenage members active on an online forum dedicated to the extreme right. The Atomwaffen Division (AWD) was founded in 2015 by Brandon Russell while he was a teenager living in Florida. It reorganized as the National Socialist Organization in July 2020. AWD claimed to have disbanded in March 2020. As of early 2020, most of the individuals identified as group leaders have been arrested by U.S. Mason is a former member of the American Nazi Party and serves as an advisor to AWD. AWD’s ideology draws from SIEGE, a collection of writings by American neo-Nazi James Mason. Comprised primarily of young men, AWD was born from an online extreme-right message board and continues to recruit a following on the Internet. The group has cultivated ties with white supremacist and neo-Nazi groups in Europe, some of which claim to be affiliates of the U.S.-based AWD. Operating under a decentralized structure, AWD is divided into leaderless cells scattered across the country. AWD has been linked to acts of violence in the United States, including killings, explosives and firearms offenses, and plots against critical infrastructure.
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Founded in 2015, the group is known for its anti-Semitic, anti-LGBT, and apocalyptic beliefs. government, foment a race war, and establish a new society based on principles of national socialism and white supremacism. The name “Atomwaffen” is German for “nuclear weapons.” AWD promotes the use of violence to overthrow the U.S. The Atomwaffen Division (AWD), known as the National Socialist Order (NSO) after July 2020, is an accelerationist neo-Nazi militant organization operating in the United States with affiliates overseas.