From the Daily Mail: The US intelligence community believes that among the biggest threats to US national security is the rise of radicalized US-based lone wolf actors.
The 2026 Annual Threat Assessment released by the Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard’s office reveals that terrorism threats from teenage extremists are surging.
‘The most likely terrorist attack scenario in the Homeland involves U.S.-based lone offenders,’ the March 2026 unclassified report notes.
It goes on to list the 2025 New Year’s Day attack in New Orleans, Louisiana, and the June 2025 attack in Boulder, Colorado examples, and blames anti-Israel sentiment for the increase in offenses of this nature.
CLICK HERE to access the just-released 34-page report, titled, “2026 Annual Threat Assessment of the U.S. Intelligence Community.”
The report warns:
While al-Qa‘ida and ISIS maintain the intent to launch operations targeting the U.S., the most likely terrorist attack scenario in the Homeland involves U.S.-based lone offenders—such as the New Orleans attacker on New Year’s Day in 2025 and the perpetrator of the attack on a pro-Israel gathering in Boulder, Colorado in June 2025. These individuals take inspiration from foreign terrorist ideologies and propaganda that often exploit world events such as the Gaza conflict to fuel radicalization and mobilization. Al-Qa‘ida and ISIS release media encouraging U.S.- based supporters to conduct attacks and often offer tactical guidance.
• In 2025, AQAP increased its media production calling for attacks in the West, including against senior U.S. officials. Meanwhile, ISIS’s ability to inspire violence was underscored by the New Orleans attack, which used tactics promoted by the group to kill 15 people and injure many more amid holiday celebrations.
• Teenage Islamist extremists were responsible for a significant portion of U.S.-based plotting in 2025, continuing a trend from the past several years. These individuals were driven in part by the ease of accessing terrorist messaging and networks on social media. In March 2025, a 16-year-old from Virginia, motivated by Islamist ideology, who had consumed terrorist media
and wanted to join ISIS, rammed a stolen vehicle into a police car in New Jersey and tried to stab the officer.
The report also directly points to the spread of Islamist ideology, the Muslim Brotherhood, and those who support Sharia law:
The spread of Islamist ideology—in some cases led by individuals and organizations associated with the Muslim Brotherhood who have provided financial and other forms of material support to terrorist groups such as HAMAS and Hizballah—poses a fundamental threat to freedom and foundational principles that underpin Western Civilization.
Violent networks, including supporters of al-Qa‘ida and ISIS, often use appeals to Islamist identities and ideology to fuel recruiting and financial support for terrorist groups and individuals around the world.
At the extreme end are groups that endorse the violent imposition of Sharia in governance, directly undermining fundamental Western freedoms of speech and religion, with the ultimate aim of establishing an Islamist caliphate.There are growing examples of this in various European countries such as Austria, Germany, and the UK.The designation of Muslim Brotherhood chapters that fund and promote violence as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) is a mechanism to secure Americans against this threat.
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence today released the 2026 Annual Threat Assessment (ATA) of the U.S. Intelligence Community.
🔗 Read the assessment here: https://t.co/pLM5EfwMFV pic.twitter.com/jO7Emx2PxR
— Office of the DNI (@ODNIgov) March 18, 2026
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