The Reality of “Lone Wolf” Terrorist Attacks

For many, perhaps most, people the term “lone wolf” as it refers to terrorist attacks gives the impression that these attacks are isolated incidents with no commonality or connectivity; random acts, if you will.

In my opinion – which is based on my relevant experience, thus those with differing, albeit relevant, experience may have a differing opinion – this is precisely the impression this Administration and the sycophantic media would prefer you have.

The reality is quite different. Over the last 22 years, there has been a series of no less than 15 terrorist attacks on U.S. soil that were conducted by lone actors (or in the case of the Boston Marathon Bombing, an autonomous “micro cell” consisting of two terrorists), all of which share a singular common thread – they were deliberate, premeditated attacks conducted by Radical Islamic Extremists. (See the list below).

Despite what others would have people believe, this is a pattern of activity that, given the doctrine and ideology shared by Radical Islamic Extremist groups around the world, is in fact representative of an existential threat to this country and the vast majority of its population.

To deny this fact, which is supported by incontrovertible evidence presented over the course of two decades, is either:

1. naive
2. delusional
3. sympathetic to the cause of Islamic Extremism
4. all of the above

Radical Islamic Extremist Terrorist Attacks Conducted by Lone Actors/Micro Cells on U.S. Soil

Mir Aimal Kansi

January 25, 1993, Kansi shot CIA employees in their cars as they were waiting at a stoplight, killing two and injuring three others. He reportedly got angry watching news reports of attacks on Muslims and stated his motive was that he was “angry with the policy of the U.S. government in the Middle East”.

Ali Hassan Abu Kamal

On February 23, 1997, Kamal opened fire in the observation deck of the Empire State Building, killing one and wounding six others before committing suicide

Hesham Mohamed Hadayet

On July 4, 2002, Hadayet opened fire at an El Al ticket stand at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), killing two.

Mohammed Taheri-azar

In 2006, Taheri-azar drove his car into a crowd at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in an attempt to kill Americans in supposed revenge for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. A letter he left for police read: “I live with the holy Koran as my constitution for right and wrong and definition of injustice… I’ve read all 114 chapters about 20 times since June of 2003 when I started reading the Koran. The U.S. government is responsible for the deaths and torture of countless followers of Allah, my brothers and sisters. My attack on Americans at UNC-CH March 3, was in retaliation for similar attacks orchestrated by the U.S. government on my fellow followers of Allah in Iraq, Afghanistan, Palestine, Saudi Arabia and other Islamic territories.”

Naveed Afzal Haq

Haq attacked the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle in 2006 with a gun, killing a woman and wounding five. According to the Seattle police, Haq said “he wanted the United States to leave Iraq, that his people were being mistreated and that the United States was harming his people. And he pointedly blamed the Jewish people for all of these problems. He stated he didn’t care if he lived.” Those who worked with Haq said he self-identified as a “Muslim-American”

Nidal Malik Hasan

In November of 2009 Hasan perpetrated an attack at Fort Hood, near Killeen, Texas. Shot 13 people and injured more than 30 others.The shooting produced more casualties than any other on an American military base. Although eyewitnesses reported hearing him shout “Alu Ahkbar” during the attack, and despite his connection with a radical Imam, Hasan’s attack was only recently re-classified as a terrorist attack, after initially being classified as a “workplace violence” incident.

Faisal Shahzad

Arrested for the attempted May 1, 2010, Times Square car bombing. On June 21, 2010, in Federal District Court in Manhattan, he confessed to 10 counts arising from the bombing and is serving a life sentence in Federal Prison.

Abdulhakim Mujahid Muhammad

Muhammad shot and killed an Army soldier at a Little Rock recruiting station in 2010. The feds didn’t charge him with terrorism; instead, state authorities charged him with murder. As the Los Angeles Times reports, after converting to Islam in Tennessee at age 20, he moved to Yemen, was arrested there, and then came back to the United States to attack the recruiting station. According to police, Mohammed stated he was “mad at the U.S. military because of what they had done to Muslims in the past,” and he wanted to “kill as many people in the Army as he could.”

Mohamed Osman Mohamud

On November 26, 2010, Mohamud was arrested by the FBI in a sting operation after attempting to set off what he thought was a car bomb at a Christmas tree lighting in Portland, Oregon. He was charged with attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction.

Yusuf Ibrahim

In 2013 he shot 25-year-old Hanny Tawadros and 27-year-old Amgad Konds, then cut off their heads and hands. The two were Egyptian Coptic Christian expatriates, Ibrahim was Muslim.

Quazi Mohammad Rezwanul Ahsan Nafis

In October 2012, Nafis was arrested in a sting operation, after attempting to detonate what he believed to be a Vehicle Borne Improvised Explosive Device (VBIED) outside the Federal Reserve Bank in New York City.

Dzhokar Tsarnaev and Tamerlan Tsarnaev

In April 2013, kill 3 people, injure more than 260 at the Boston Marathon. Dzhokar said the brothers were motivated by extremist Islamist beliefs.

Ali Muhammad Brown

On June 25, 2014 Brown murdered 19-year-old Brendan Tevlin because, as he told police, he was starting his own jihad.

Zale F. Thompson

On October 23, 2014, Thompson, a Muslim convert, charged at 4 NYPD officers with a hatchet. He injured 2 of them, and the two that weren’t injured shot him to death.

Mohammad Youssuf Abdulazeez

This past week Abdulazeez opened fire on two US military facilities, one a USMC Recruiting Station, the other a US Navy facility, killing a total of four US service members and wounding several more.