New York, NY, May 2, 2005 … In an effort to provide a ready source of information to law enforcement, government agencies, the media and others who follow trends in terrorism, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has launched an online visual database that identifies and explains symbols and emblems commonly used by international terrorists and their supporters.

The ADL Terrorist Symbols Database, available online at www.adl.org/terrorism/symbols, features visual symbols, flags and graffiti associated with more than a dozen international terrorist groups, including Al Qaeda, the Al Aksa Martyrs Brigades, Kurdistan Workers Party, Palestine Liberation Front and the Muslim Brotherhood.  Each entry features a snapshot of the terrorist group's symbol or emblem, an explanation of the origins and meaning of the symbol, and an overview of the group's mission, goals and recent activities.

"With the increased threat of terrorism in the post 9-11 world, it is important that law enforcement and others who investigate threats within our borders and abroad have immediate access to information on symbols associated with dangerous terrorist groups," said Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director.  "It is our hope that the Terrorist Symbols Database will provide an invaluable resource to those charged with combating the proliferation of global terrorist groups."

The database is an offshoot of the League's highly regarded online resource, Hate On Display, A Visual Database of Extremist Symbols, Logos and Tattoos.  Information in the Terrorist Symbols Database has been arranged in order to convey, in a dramatic manner, ideas about each group's founding, ideology, aims and methods.  The database will be continually added to and updated by the League's experts on terrorism.

The ADL Terrorist Symbols Database is part of the League's newly redesigned Web pages dedicated to international terrorism.  The pages contain up-to-date information on terrorist groups and activities around the globe, and serve as a replacement for ADL's highly regarded, longstanding print newsletter Terrorism Update.  While Terrorism Update will no longer appear in print, subscribers can now receive the newsletter via e-mail.

The Anti-Defamation League, founded in 1913, is the world's leading organization fighting anti-Semitism through programs and services that counteract hatred, prejudice and bigotry.