Islamic jihad remained by far and away the largest terror threat facing the European Union, followed in second place by far-left extremists, the annual report by Europol found.
The European Union Terrorism Situation and Trend Report released this month stated that there were 45 terrorist incidents across Europe in 2025, of which 22 were completed, 20 were foiled, and 3 failed, resulting in the deaths of six people. Europol noted that this was a decrease over the previous year, when there were 58 attacks, 34 of which were successful, with five fatalities.
According to the report, Jihadist terrorism accounted for the majority of incidents last year at 24. This represented the same number of Islamist terror instances as the year before; however, last year saw three more successful attacks, for a total of nine. These occurred in Germany (4), France (2), Austria (1), Ireland (1) and Spain (1). Other Islamist intended attacks were foiled in France (8), Austria (6), and Belgium (1).
Islamist terrorism was followed by far-left and anarchist extremism, which accounted for 12 instances, 11 of which were successfully carried out. This included ten attacks in Italy and one in Greece.
Meanwhile, five instances were labelled as right-wing terror, with just one attack being completed in France, killing one, and four others being foiled in France and Ireland. However, despite this, there were significantly more arrests involving right-wing terror at 43, compared to the 13 arrests made in connection with leftist terror.
The vast majority of arrests came in relation to jihadist terrorism-related offences, with 347 individuals being arrested in 16 EU member states, with the highest number of arrests occurring in Spain at 100 and France at 64.
Europol reported that 259 of the 398 people arrested with known residence status were EU citizens, while 139 were foreign nationals. The average age of those arrested was 27, while 130 were listed as under 18. The youngest arrested on a terror charge was only 12 years old, while the oldest, a suspected leftist terrorist, was 79 years old.
The report found that the majority of Jihadist terrorists were lone wolf actors or acted with like-minded individuals in their area rather than operating in a hierarchical system, as was more often the case in past decades. However, some suspects were in contact with broader terror networks in countries like Afghanistan, Iraq, or Pakistan.
Europol stated that ISIS propaganda focused heavily on encouraging supporters to “carry out autonomous attacks”, seeking to be perceived as having “broadly incited terrorist attacks by spreading its ideology.”
“Indirect attribution helped IS promote itself as a primary actor on the jihadist scene. It also served to counter the risk of being marginalised to the advantage of other groups, which played a more active role in current conflicts, for example in Gaza,” the report noted.
“IS propaganda exploited events perceived as victimising Muslims and generating grievances among its audiences. Most prominently in 2025, it instrumentalised the conflict in Gaza to fuel anti-semitic narratives, including calls to target Jewish individuals, communities and interests,” Europol added.
Targeting Jewish interests in the European Union was also a key aim of those loyal to the Islamist regime in Iran, which the report claimed to have expanded its operations within the bloc, including through its terror proxy and criminal networks on the continent.
“Whereas in the past, including in 2025, these groups mainly used the EU for fundraising and logistical support, some may increasingly consider attacks on Jewish, Israeli or other targets in the EU,” the report stated.
In terms of leftist-anarchist terror, Europol found that their ultimate aim was often inspired by a desire to “trigger a violent revolution against the political, social and economic system of a state, in order to establish socialism and ultimately establish a communist and classless society.”
The report said that such terrorists, often inspired by Marxist-Leninist ideology, exploit various political themes, such as opposing capitalism, imperialism, the justice system, and border controls. The supposed climate emergency was also found to be a top concern for far-left extremists.
Commenting on the report, the Acting Executive Director of Europol, Jürgen Ebner, said: “Terrorism and violent extremism in the EU continue to evolve in scale and complexity, driven by ideological diversity, technological developments and geopolitical instability. In this increasingly dynamic threat environment, the EU must continue to adapt and strengthen its collective response.”