House Homeland Security Committee releases March terror threat snapshot

U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX), chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, released this week a terror threat snapshot for the month of March, which stated that homegrown jihadist cases hit a new high since the Sept. 11 attacks.

“This month marked a grim milestone, as we surpassed 200 homegrown jihadist cases in the United States since 9/11,” McCaul said. “Most of those plots or attacks occurred in just the past few years, driven by an explosion in terrorist recruitment and radicalization online. Meanwhile, ISIS, al Qaeda, and other Islamist terror groups overseas are proving to be resilient, and they remain focused on attacking America and our allies.”

McCaul said he remains concerned that some extremist groups could target Americans in conflict zones overseas by using bombs or chemical weapons.

The report said that ISIS continues to inspire and direct terrorist plotting at a high rate, with 13 plots or attacks against Western targets since the beginning of 2017. The committee also said that the terror threat alert remained particularly high in Europe, where more than six jihadist plots have been stopped within the last month.

The report also noted that terror activity in Afghanistan was on the rise and that ISIS’ Khorasan Province continued to expand its strength throughout Pakistan and Afghanistan.

The monthly snapshot allows for the committee to inform the public of the growing threat America and its allies face in the fight against worldwide terrorist groups.