The New York Police Department (NYPD) released a sweeping report on Wednesday, warning of a rising threat from homegrown terrorists.
The study called "Radicalization in the West: the Homegrown Threat," was the first report of its kind to analyze the path terrorists take on the road to extremism.
The study found that "it starts out interestingly enough with unremarkable people, who nothing in their background might suggest that they are going to go down this path," said NYPD analyst Mitchell Silber.
But Silber said it was happening faster and people were getting younger.
Analysts say the suspects usually go through four steps of development before becoming extremists, starting with becoming disenfranchised with their own cultures or country.
"There were some commonalities among the individuals who went the distance," said Silber, adding economics was not a driver.
Silber said something, like the War in Iraq, or a death in the family, generally serves as a catalyst.
To get the report, police studied about a dozen planned or executed attacks around the world including the 2005 London transit attack, and the plots to blow up Fort Dix and the Herald Square subway station.
The NYPD has presented the report to federal law enforcement. They noted that it was just a very small fraction of the population that ever goes down this path, but they hope the research will help them identify those who do.
Source: Xinhua
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