The United States faces a far greater threat from homegrown “lone wolf” terrorists than jihadists, according to a newly released report — but political concerns prevent authorities from tackling them head-on.
The Department of Homeland Security essentially disbanded its team devoted to non-Islamic domestic terrorism in early 2009 over complaints that President Barack Obama was targeting all conservatives and military veterans, rather than radical elements plotting violence.
That leaves Americans vulnerable to terrorist attacks carried out by U.S. citizens, according to a report issued Thursday by the Southern Poverty Law Center.
The report – “Age of the Wolf: A Study of the Rise of Lone Wolf and Leaderless Resistance Terrorism” – found that right-wing radicals or homegrown jihadists carried out violent attacks every 34 days, on average, between April 1, 2009, and Feb. 1, 2015.
Many of these attacks are carried out by individuals who sought no assistance and told no one else of their plans – making them particularly difficult to detect until they act.
“What keeps me up at night is these guys – the lone wolf,” said Chief Art Acevado, of Austin, Texas, police.
