Strictly in terms of lethality, the data indicate that lone wolf terrorism in america is not on the rise. The age of lone wolf terrorisma massive study of loneactor terrorism in the united statesis the product of years of patient and dogged empirical investigation. The results of this study suggest that lone wolf terrorists are more educated and socially isolated than groupbased actors. Drawing on extensive international data and qualitative case studies, it examines the global patterns in and key features of lone wolf terrorism over the past four decades. The stereotype of the lone wolf terrorist that dominates todays media landscape was not yet fully formed. In its original sense, a lone wolf is an animal or person that generally. It is perhaps the sheer unpredictability of the loneactor terrorist that makes this type of behavior so difficult to stop, or as phillips r s s, p.
The age of the lone wolf terrorist the american conservative. Lone wolf terrorism a brief bibliography homeland security. This culture must change, and it must change rapidly. A lone wolf terrorist ahead of his time provides readers an indepth, biographical picture of muharem kurbegovic, an immigrant who felt his adopted country had rejected him resulting in his turning against the government in order to change the political climate regarding immigration and sex laws. Oct 02, 2017 a 20 study of violence by farright extremists in america in criminology and public policy found 40 percent of lone wolf domestic terrorists had a history of mental illness. A lone actor, lone actor terrorist, or lone wolf is someone who prepares and commits violent acts alone, outside of any command structure and without material assistance from any group. A 20 study of violence by farright extremists in america in criminology and public policy found 40 percent of lone wolf domestic terrorists had a. Solo or lone or single and actor and terrorism or terrorist definitions. There is doubt as to whether or not monis fit the definition of a lone wolf terrorist. There is no one universally accepted definition of lone wolf terrorism. The new lone wolf provision makes it easier for the us government to conduct surveillance of suspected lonewolf terrorists who either act in sympathy with the aims of an international terrorist group but not on its behalf, or whose link to an international terrorist group cannot be demonstrated. Lone wolf terrorists motivated by salafistinspired jihadism have gotten the most attention in recent years, but now white supremacist terrorism has become a threat, too. Fromerwexler fellow and director, stein program on counterterrorism and intelligence, the washington institute for near east policy.
An fbi study of lone offender terrorist attacks in the u. They may be influenced or motivated by the ideology and beliefs of an external group and may act in support of such a group. The lethality of lonewolf terrorism has reached an alltime high in the united states. Queensland university of technology criminologist associate professor mark lauchs said it was important the siege wasnt elevated to a terrorist attack as such. A crisis management perspective article pdf available in journal of security and sustainability issues 81.
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. Understanding the growing threat kindle edition by simon, jeffrey d. A datadriven analysis of individual terrorists in the united states since 911, thesis, naval postgraduate school, 2012. Pdf after a brief discussion of the epistemological and phenomenological difficulties associated with the concept of lone wolf terrorism, a number of. Press accounts said that he matches the modern profile of the unaffiliated, lone wolf terrorist on 28 july 2006, naveed afzal haq, saying i am a muslim american, angry at israel, perpetrated the seattle jewish federation shooting in the belltown neighborhood of seattle, killing one woman and wounding five others. Click download or read online button to get lone wolf terrorism book now.
Apr 08, 2016 tactical and often strategic, terrorist actions also are attentionseeking. The myth of the lone wolf terrorist news the guardian. Trends and developments in lone wolf terrorism in the. After a brief discussion of the epistemological and phenomenological difficulties associated with the concept of lone wolf terrorism, a number of possible counterterrorist approaches are discussed. Using knowledge of radicalization pathways to forge prevention. Lone wolf terrorism download ebook pdf, epub, tuebl, mobi. 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. Lonewolf terrorist attacks have occurred in the united states throughout the countrys history. Lone wolf terrorism is the new catchy term being over used by by the news factories like cnn and fox. Combatting the financing of lonewolf and smallscale terrorist attacks. The new lone wolf provision makes it easier for the us government to conduct surveillance of suspected lonewolf terrorists who either act in sympathy with the aims of an international terrorist group but not on its behalf, or whose link to an international terrorist group cannot be. Ludwick is an expert on lonewolf terrorists, and his other books on lone wolf terrorism include lone wolf terrorism. These acts are intentional, instrumental, and predatory, as well as planned, purposeful, and offensive. Data on the characteristics, goals, and motivations of lone wolves can form the basis of policies to curb lone wolf terrorism and its effects.
Law enforcement and the antiterrorist community have come to call men and women like this lone wolf terrorists, meaning that while they may be inspired in some sense by outside groups. Show full abstract terrorist movements promote the notion of lone wolf violence because of the difficulties authorities have in detecting or preventing such acts, which gives lone wolves the. An emerging threat 6 the lonewolf terrorist attack has emerged as a popular and effective method for terrorists attacking the united states. Preventing the next lone wolf terrorist attack requires. Using knowledge of radicalization pathways to forge prevention strategies. Motive appears to be the biggest difference between copycat mass murderers and copycat lone wolf terrorists. Among them are religious zealots, environmental and animal rights extremists. Attempted attacks from individual terrorists unaffiliated with terrorist groups may be becoming more prevalent. Lone wolfterrorismus, strafverfolgung, extremismus ever since the 11 september 2001 terrorist attacks, the expectation was that alqaeda was the only organization capable of inflicting indiscriminate, mass casualty. Pdf download understanding lone wolf terrorism free. Domestic terrorism and related radical violence as opposed to terrorist attacks emanating from abroad continue to plague the nation. The appendix contains brief descriptions of 53 lone wolf terrorist cases that occurred in the united states from september 2001 to november 2011. For instance, young isis recruits may believe falsely that the west is.
Scholars also suggest that lone wolf terrorism what we refer to in this report as lone actor terrorism is more prevalent in the u. Simon provides an excellent historical account which. The lone wolf terrorist 1 introduction the lone wolf terrorist. A lone wolf terrorist is a person who acts on his or her own without orders from or connections to an organization. Spaaij 2011, and that the threat is particularly acute today. The lethality of lone wolf terrorism has reached an alltime high in the united states. The reality is that this type of terrorism is not new at all, in fact it goes back a long time. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading lone wolf terrorism. Both the general public and government officials acknowledge the presence and importance of these attacks. This site is like a library, use search box in the widget to get ebook that you want.
Attacks challenge lone wolf terrorist theory experts highlight organized structure of jihadist groups as counter to increasingly popular postulate by michel moutot 18. How radicalization to terrorism occurs in the united. As largescale, complicated terrorist attacks become harder to execute, the lone wolf scenario becomes more of a threat. This is an expository essay, concentrated on the three key psychological triggers that motivate typical lone wolves to engage in terrorism. Some perspectives professor yonah alexander director, interuniversity center for terrorism studies from the dawn of history humanity has continuously faced two critical security challenges. Lone wolves also engage in less precursor activities than group actors, but are willing to travel greater distances to prepare for and execute attacks. 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. To date, the databases have captured information on 92 separate attacks by domestic lone wolf terrorists. Lone wolf terrorism is a growing phenomenon, and research on the topic is severely lacking1. How radicalization to terrorism occurs in the united states. 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.
The national institute of justice is the research, development, and evaluation agency of the u. On 15 december 2014, a hostage crisis in the lindt cafe in martin place, sydney ended with three deaths, including the suspect man haron monis. We solely focus on lone wolves who perpetrate acts aimed at taking away lives or who threaten to take away lives. A lone actor, loneactor terrorist, or lone wolf is someone who prepares and commits violent acts alone, outside of any command structure and without material assistance from any group. All statements of fact, opinion, or analysis expressed are. Tactical and often strategic, terrorist actions also are attentionseeking. How can lone wolf terrorism be effectively countered. After a brief discussion of the epistemological and phenomenological difficulties associated with the concept of lone wolf terrorism, a number of possible counter terrorist approaches are discussed. 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. Trends and developments in lone wolf terrorism in the western. Indeed, the group has been pushing such attacks for years now. Lone wolf terrorism is the term used to describe violent acts committed by a single perpetrator. The author does a good job chronicling the history of lone wolf terrorism as well as classifying the motivational types of lone wolf terrorists.
No single profile the abovementioned definition of lone wolf terrorists comprises a wide variety of violent extremists. This study also reveals that the vast majority of this violence is coming from lone wolves or leaderless resistance groups, most of the latter composed of just two men. With less attacks in the west being group networked attacks and an increasing amount of lone wolf. Instituut voor veiligheids en crisismanagement cot, lone wolf terrorism, report, 2007. Lone wolf terrorismus, strafverfolgung, extremismus ever since the 11 september 2001 terrorist attacks, the expectation was that alqaeda was the only organization capable of inflicting indiscriminate, mass casualty. One of the first indepth analyses of lone wolf terrorism, this publication sets out to answer these questions. Aug 01, 2017 one study has shown that a lone wolf terrorist is. Understanding the growing threat and the terrorist trap. 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. 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.
Mar 30, 2017 the stereotype of the lone wolf terrorist that dominates todays media landscape was not yet fully formed. Attacks challenge lone wolf terrorist theory the times. Nov, 2019 an fbi study of lone offender terrorist attacks in the u. For instance, young isis recruits may believe falsely that the west is at war with. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Lone wolves come from a variety of backgrounds and can have a wide range of motives to their actions. Analysis of weak signals for detecting lone wolf terrorists.
Apr 03, 2019 lone wolf terrorists motivated by salafistinspired jihadism have gotten the most attention in recent years, but now white supremacist terrorism has become a threat, too. Pdf the key psychological triggers of lone wolf terrorist. Lone wolf terrorists, who use bombs, firearms, knives, vehicles. 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.
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