The European Union’s Counter-Terrorism Coordinator, Bartjan Wegter, has warned of a new terror menace emerging in Europe, driven primarily by young people online, as reported by the Associated Press. This phenomenon, termed “nihilistic violent extremism,” is characterized by violence perpetrated for its own sake rather than for ideological or political motives. During a June-July campaign to disrupt an online community known as “The COM,” police investigators from nine European countries identified approximately 4,340 URLs associated with this group. Wegter emphasized that this trend represents a shift from traditional jihadist threats, which still pose a significant risk, accounting for 24 out of 45 reported terrorist attacks across 10 EU countries in the previous year.

The article highlights specific incidents illustrating the nature of this new threat. In Finland, a 16-year-old boy stabbed three female students, sharing a manifesto on social media expressing a desire for a “significant” and “exciting” act without any political motive. Similarly, in Italy, a 15-year-old planned a murder to gain online notoriety, possessing violent imagery and child pornography on his smartphone. Wegter noted that these acts are often organized through online networks predominantly involving young individuals, leading to offline violence such as unprovoked stabbings. The coordinator stressed the challenges in preventing and tracking these attacks due to the perpetrators’ lack of criminal records and the encrypted nature of their online interactions. Additionally, the EU document cited the ongoing influence of groups like 764, founded by an American convicted of serious offenses, which continues to operate despite its leader’s imprisonment. Source

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