Lone wolfterrorismus, strafverfolgung, extremismus ever since the 11 september 2001 terrorist attacks, the expectation was that alqaeda was the only organization capable of. All statements of fact, opinion, or analysis expressed are. Using knowledge of radicalization pathways to forge prevention strategies. Another problem is that group leaders do not control lone wolves, who might adopt tactics that hurt the broader. This thesis analyzes these characteristics and their relationship to successful attacks. Trends and developments in lone wolf terrorism in the western. A new fbi study has been published on lone wolf violent attacks. Pdf after a brief discussion of the epistemological and phenomenological difficulties associated with the concept of lone wolf terrorism, a number of. The myth of the lone wolf terrorist news the guardian. When we drill down to the countylevel, we find that similar to groupbased terrorism and violent hate crimes, loneactor terrorism is more likely to occur in counties with larger populations, lower. The lethality of lonewolf terrorism has reached an alltime high in the united states. Both the general public and government officials acknowledge the presence and importance of these attacks. Lonewolf terrorist attacks are extremely difficult to prevent because assailants operate solo and, therefore, often under the radar of law enforcement. But while this nations commitment to individual liberty is one.
The list includes both terrorist attacks and foiled terrorist plots. The national institute of justice is the research, development, and evaluation agency of the u. Kagan, kimberly kagan, jennifer cafarella, harleen gambhir, and katherine zimmerman al qaeda and isis. The prevalence of lone wolf terrorism is not limited to radical islamism, but is also prominent among white supremacists, such as anders breivik of norway, and antiabortion activists. The age of lone wolf terrorism columbia university press. He believes that the most serious threats remain those posed by groupbased terrorists12.
We therefore examine these aspects exclusively on the basis of the five cases. The age of lone wolf terrorisma massive study of lone actor terrorism in the united statesis the product of years of patient and dogged empirical investigation. On the other hand, 6% of lone actor terrorist attacks target businesses versus 27% of groupbased terrorist attacks. An explanation and assessment claire wiskind, research assistant, ict summer 2016 the views expressed in this publication are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of. See clark mccauley, sophia moskalenko and benjamin van son, characteristics of lonewolf violent offenders. Social media incitement is considered as a possible cause for many of. The lone wolf is the new nightmare, wrote washington post columnist charles. Jasparros 2010 study asserts that lone wolf terrorism is not a big threat, as lone wolf attacks carry a poor record of success, and result in fewer fatalities. Isolated individuals using firearms with highcapacity magazines are committing brutally efficient killings with the aim of terrorizing others, yet there is little consensus on what connects.
But in fact, the groups and their ideologues provide the essential ideology that motivates the lone wolves and others. Analysis of weak signals for detecting lone wolf terrorists joel brynielsson, andreas horndahl, fredrik johansson, lisa kaati, christian martenson, pontus svenson. Since its founding in 2012, the national institute of justices domestic radicalization to terrorism program has sponsored research on how radicalization to terrorism occurs in the united states in order to support prevention and intervention efforts. The southern poverty law center s study of the nature of these attacks is based on the following 63 incidents, which occurred between april 1, 2009, and feb. Isolated individuals using firearms with highcapacity magazines are committing brutally efficient killings with the aim of terrorizing others, yet there is little consensus on what connects these crimes and the motivations behind them. On the other hand, 6% of loneactor terrorist attacks target businesses versus 27% of groupbased terrorist attacks. Both are referred to in the in lone wolf terrorism, cot, instituut voor. An emerging threat 6 the lonewolf terrorist attack has emerged as a popular and effective method for terrorists attacking the united states. The 19 men who carried out the attacks were jihadis. The lone wolf terrorist 3 against the backdrop of the foregoing brief discussion, as well as the expanded rise in contemporary lone wolf attacks around the world, it behooves all concerned nations to undertake best practices strategies that necessarily must be based on three main levels. Abstract in the aftermath of the boston marathon terrorist attack, america can learn a few vital lessons on how to stop the next lone wolftype attack. Eliminating the complex framework of a terrorist organization makes it easier for the lonewolf terrorist to avoid detection and harder to prevent a terrorist attack. Americans should expect nothing less from their government.
On 19 august 2010, an individual uyghur was suspected in having planted a bicycle bomb in aksu that killed 7 people. Terrorist attacks that are carried out by small cells are not classified as lone wolf attacks. Lone wolf attacks seem to be entering the broader cultural imagination in the west. Increasingly, lone actor terrorism is the crest of the terrorist wave, with groups such as daesh explicitly advancing and instigating the strategy, and terrorists increasingly choosing it as their methodology to launch attacks.
Frequency of lone wolf terrorist attacks increasing. Hewitts 2003 study identified 30 cases of lone wolf terrorism in the united states between. It is also the culmination of a lot of hard thinking about the interior world and entanglements of that most quintessentially american iteration of con temporary terrorism. Dickson 5 a narrower definition offered by spaaij 2010 attempts to isolate the phenomenon of lone wolf terrorism and specifies, a lone wolf terrorist may identify or sympathize with extremist movements or terrorist organizations, however if they join an established organization, they cease to be deemed as a lone wolf. Preventing the next lone wolf terrorist attack requires. Assessment of the effectiveness of intelligence agencies in preventing terrorism, especially those of lone wolf attacks, is difficult because the study of. This site is like a library, use search box in the widget to get ebook that you want. Mondays suspected suicide attack on manchester arena was likely yet another lonewolf incident, according to one strategist. To say that lone wolf terrorism is a neglected field of research is an understatement.
Terrorist violence committed by lone actor extremists, the colloquial lone wolf, is on the rise. A lone wolf, in brief, is an individual or small group of individuals who use traditional terrorist tactics including violence and the targeting of civilians towards the achievement of explicitly political or ideological goals, but who act without membership or cooperation with an official or unofficial terrorist organization, cell or group. Data on the characteristics, goals, and motivations of lone wolves can form the basis of policies to curb lone wolf terrorism and its effects. Lone wolf terrorist attacks in the us are becoming. Analysis of weak signals for detecting lone wolf terrorists.
Integrated threat assessment center unclassified intelligence report, lone wolf attacks. The limits of working alone also mean that, for the most part, lone wolf attacks tend to be smaller and less damaging than attacks conducted by independent cells or hierarchical organizations. Radicalized rightwing extremists socalled lone wolves are engag. In a world that to any other wolf might appear trackless, shibaan, the obea of the macduncan clan had found the she wolfs trail. European governments neglecting the threat of extreme right lone actor terrorists. Lone wolf terrorism a brief bibliography homeland security. Pdf trends and developments in lone wolf terrorism in. In january 2011, salman taseer, the governor of punjab, pakistan was assassinated by a lone wolf. Well written and exhaustively researched, the age of lone wolf terrorism is an encyclopedia of information on the history, characteristics, methodology, and evolution of the lone wolf threat.
The phenomenon of lone wolf attacks by radical jihadis can be traced to the late 1990s when al qaeda affiliated writer and strategist abu musab alsuri began advocating within the organization for. Pdf investigating the role of telegram app in lone wolf. To understand threads of isis communication on telegram we used digital ethnography approach. How radicalization to terrorism occurs in the united states. The psychology of lonewolf terrorism article pdf available in counselling psychology quarterly 242. Swedish defence research agency foi stockholm, sweden email. Historical data is broken into pre911 and post911 groupings for analysis. These occurred through the early months of 2016, then became sporadic. Lone wolf attacks are far more rare than attacks carried out by groups. Pdf trends and developments in lone wolf terrorism in the. International business times 1 march 2016 neonazi lonewolf attacks in europe are more deadly than isisinspired terrorist plots wiredgov 1 march 2016 rusi. Jerusalem bmw attack in which a palestinian used a bmw as a murder weapon.
Jul 14, 2016 the phenomenon of lone wolf attacks by radical jihadis can be traced to the late 1990s when al qaeda affiliated writer and strategist abu musab alsuri began advocating within the organization for. A fter 911, lonewolf terrorism suddenly seemed like a distraction from more serious threats. Lone wolf terrorist attacks in the us are becoming deadlier. The study aims to capture links between the use of encrypted communication channel telegram and lone wolf attacks occurred in europe between 20152016. The lone wolf terrorist 3 against the backdrop of the foregoing brief discussion, as well as the expanded rise in contemporary lone wolf attacks around the world, it behooves all concerned nations to undertake best practices strategies that necessarily must be based on. When we drill down to the countylevel, we find that similar to groupbased terrorism and violent hate crimes, lone actor terrorism is more likely to occur in counties with larger populations, lower. Increasingly, loneactor terrorism is the crest of the. Beydoun abstractthe recent spike in mass shootings, topped by the october 1, 2017, las vegas massacre, dubbed the deadliest mass shooting in modern u. The she wolf would have only a few hours for such fanciful thinking. The number of attacks is increasing, however, and has grown each year since 2000. Simons five categories of lone wolf terrorists, in lone wolf terrorism, 4346.
How radicalization to terrorism occurs in the united. A lone wolf initiative was later added in an attempt to identify potential lone attackers before they can act violently. Destroying isis and al qaeda, report one frederick w. Still, many lone wolf cases exhibit certain characteristics. Leaderless resistance, terrorism and political violence, vol. The very high percentage of lone wolf and leaderless attacks and the declining number of groups on the radical right might suggest to some that the importance of the larger radical milieu is declining. An fbi study of lone offender terrorist attacks in the u. Lonewolf terrorist attacks have occurred in the united states throughout the countrys history. As compared to those on the far right, lone wolf attackers who become inspired by alqaeda and. However, the definition does not exclude the possibility that lone wolf cyber attacks could constitute terrorism, and the potential of lone wolf cyber terrorism warrants future study.
Lone wolf attacks are becoming more common and more. Since 1940, there have only been around 100 successful lone wolf attacks in the united states. Lone wolf terrorism download ebook pdf, epub, tuebl, mobi. We have seen an increase in the lone wolf type attacks, which, from a law enforcement and investigation perspective, are the most challenging. Nov, 2019 an fbi study of lone offender terrorist attacks in the u. Attempted attacks from individual terrorists unaffiliated with terrorist groups may be becoming more prevalent. Lone wolf attacks are becoming more common and more deadly. Trends and developments in lone wolf terrorism in the.
This chapter then proposes that due to limited resources and expertise, critical infrastructure has become the preferred target selection for lone wolf terrorism. Previous lone wolf attacks are analyzed, and a trend of increased frequency and mortality rates resulting from such attacks is established. Yet, in a reflection of research on terrorism more generally, our notions about lone actors are too often based on. The shadow of a new threat seems to be darkening the national security landscape.