When violence shapes identities in a larger pool of perpetrators: new Europol terrorism report

Here is the full report: European Union - Terrorism Situation and Trend Report 2026

Jihadist terrorism accounted for the largest share of attacks in 2025 (24), representing about half of all incidents. The same number was recorded in 2024, but more attacks were completed (nine, compared to six in 2024). The completed attacks occurred in Germany (4), France (2), Austria (1), Ireland (1) and Spain (1), while 15 were foiled in France (8), Austria (6) and Belgium (1). Jihadist attacks were the deadliest form of terrorism in 2025, causing five fatalities and injuring 81 people.

Five attacks were labelled right-wing terrorism. One of these five attacks was completed, in France. Four attacks were foiled, in France (3) and Ireland (1). The one completed attack classified as terrorism resulted in one fatality.

Left-wing and anarchist terrorism accounted for 12 attacks. 11 completed attacks were carried out in Italy (10) and Greece (1). One failed attack occurred in Italy. As in previous years, no victims were reported, as the targets were primarily buildings or vehicles

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Across the terrorism landscape, from religiously inspired terrorism to militant accelerhttps://web.archive.org/web/20260714074640/https://www.europol.europa.eu/cms/sites/default/files/documents/EU-TE-SAT-2026.pdfationism, online communities shape individuals through a sense of belonging. Ideology no longer acts alone, as violence itself becomes part of the self-identification. Motivation is more fluid, and radicalisation pathways become considerably more difficult to recognise. As online ecosystems dissolve traditional ideological boundaries and enable individuals to move between extremist milieus, law enforcement can no longer rely solely on conventional ideological criteria to identify emerging threats. This leads to a new landscape where terrorism is more fragmented, more adaptive and less predictable.

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A significant proportion of terrorist attacks and arrests were either claimed by or readily attributed to perpetrators adhering to jihadism. These were followed by other established terrorist ideologies, including right-wing, left-wing and anarchist, and ethno-nationalist terrorism. While individual motivations varied, terrorist offences were generally shaped by coherent and long-standing ideological frameworks.

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