Increase in solo terrorist attacks in Western countries as global terrorism escalates

According to a new report from the Global Terrorism Index (GTI), lone-wolf terrorist attacks were more common in the West in 2024 compared to previous years, reflecting the continued spread of terrorism worldwide.

Released on Wednesday, the GTI’s 2025 report revealed that the number of countries experiencing terrorist attacks increased from 58 in 2023 to 66 in the past year, signaling a significant shift after almost ten years of progress in addressing the issue.

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

“The majority of attacks in Western countries are now carried out by individuals who do not have formal ties to established groups, often radicalizing through online platforms like social media, gaming sites, and encrypted messaging apps,” noted the GTI in its report.

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)

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.”