Lone wolf attacks surge in the West as terrorism intensifies globally

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Lone-wolf terrorist attacks were more common than ever in the West during 2024 as terrorism continues to spread across the globe, according to a new report from the Global Terrorism Index (GTI).

The GTI released its 2025 report on Wednesday, finding that the number of countries that recorded a terrorist attack grew from 58 in 2023 to 66 last year. That reverses nearly a decade of improvement on the issue, GTI said.

In the West, 93% of fatal attacks were carried out by lone wolf terrorists. 

“The majority of Western attacks are now carried out by individuals without formal group affiliations, who radicalize through social media, gaming platforms and encrypted messaging apps,” GTI said in its report.

ALLEGED ABBEY GATE PLOTTER EXTRADITED TO US TO FACE ‘JUSTICE FOR OUR 13,’ FBI DIRECTOR KASH PATEL SAYS

Lone wolf attacks accounted for 93% of terrorism incidents in the West in 2024. Pictured: Russian law enforcement respond to a terrorist attack at a Moscow concert hall in March 2024. (AP Photo)

“The shift towards online radicalization has enabled potential terrorists to access extremist content, and organize with minimal physical contact. Algorithmic radicalization on popular social media sites can drive users toward progressively more extreme content over time,” the report continued.

ISIS-K MEMBER CONFESSED TO SCOUTING ABBEY GATE ATTACK ROUTE, TRAINING MOSCOW ATTACKERS: AFFIDAVIT

The report came the same day U.S. authorities arrested a suspect who the Justice Department says confessed to scouting the attack route in 2021’s Abbey Gate bombing in Afghanistan, which left 13 service members dead.

Muhammed Sharifullah, the alleged plotter of the Abbey Gate bombing that killed 13 American service members during the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, was extradited to the United States on Wednesday.  (FBI Director Kash Patel)

ISIS-K member Mohammad Sharifullah made his first federal court appearance in Virginia Wednesday on a charge of providing and conspiring to provide material support and resources to a designated foreign terrorist organization, resulting in death.

Sharifullah was extradited to the U.S. on Tuesday night to “face American justice,” FBI Director Kash Patel said.  

“3 and 1/2 years later, justice for our 13,” Patel added on X.

Mohammad Sharifullah is a member of the Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham-Khorasan Province (ISIS-K), the Justice Department says. (Alexandria Sheriff’s Office)

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President Donald Trump announced Sharifullah’s capture during his address before a joint Congress on Tuesday night, saying he was “pleased to announce that we have just apprehended the top terrorist responsible for that atrocity.”  

Anders Hagstrom is a reporter with Fox News Digital covering national politics and major breaking news events. Send tips to Anders.Hagstrom@Fox.com, or on Twitter: @Hagstrom_Anders.