The latest Global Terrorism Index 2026 shows a sharp decline in terrorism worldwide, but the trend is masking a growing and more complex threat picture—particularly across Western countries.
Globally, terrorism deaths and attacks dropped significantly in 2025, with deaths falling by 28% in 2025 to 5,582, while attacks dropped nearly 22%, with 81 countries seeing improvements. However, the threat is becoming more concentrated in a smaller number of regions, while simultaneously expanding in new ways across the West.
In North America and Europe, terrorism-related deaths rose sharply, driven by a series of smaller-scale but frequent attacks. The United States, Germany, France, and the United Kingdom all experienced incidents tied to a mix of extremist ideologies, including antisemitism, anti-government beliefs, and other forms of politically motivated violence.
Several attacks highlighted the shift. In the U.S., incidents increasingly involved individuals acting alone, often radicalized online and targeting civilian spaces. In Europe, countries including Germany and France saw attacks linked to both Islamist extremism and far-right actors, with public gatherings, religious sites, and urban centers among the targets.
The report points to a broader pattern: attacks in the West are less likely to involve large, coordinated networks and more likely to be carried out by individuals or small groups using simple methods. This makes detection more difficult and increases the frequency of lower-casualty incidents.
Online ecosystems continue to play a central role. Extremist content, conspiracy narratives, and propaganda are accelerating radicalization timelines, particularly among younger individuals. The result is a threat environment that is more decentralized and less predictable than in previous years.
While regions like the Sahel remain the global epicenter of terrorism, the rise in Western attacks underscores a parallel shift—one where the threat is no longer defined solely by large-scale operations, but by persistent, dispersed violence closer to home.
The report’s findings point to a dual reality: global terrorism is declining overall, but in Western countries, the threat is becoming more frequent, more fragmented, and harder to contain.
