Islamic State Spreads Poison Among Lone Wolves

Islamic State has expanded its global terror activities to include promotion of “lone wolf” attacks using poison in crowded malls, according to an Israeli think tank.

International Institute for Counter Terrorism Deputy Director Eitan Azani made the charge at a press briefing on Wednesday ahead of the IDC Herzliya institute’s conference next week, The Jerusalem Post reported.

As Islamic State’s presence in Iraq and Syria has dramatically eroded, it has shifted attention at least somewhat to urging followers to act on its behalf elsewhere, rather than beckoning to them to join the cause in the territory of the crumbling caliphate.

ICT Director Boaz Ganor told reporters that IS-inspired attacks are situations where “the terrorist says he is with IS” and “IS takes credit for the attack,” but these are both self-serving, false claims. Actually, in such cases IS issued no direct orders, and provided no guidance or planning to the terrorist, and may not even know about the attack until after it was carried out, said Ganor.

Although they acknowledged the difficulty of identifying and interdicting lone wolves before they strike, the hope is that through careful study of their personalities and methods — and the process of radicalization they undergo — that counter-terror efforts can be more successful in the future. Deradicalization is also a possibility that needs to be explored, they said.