Terrorism in Europe

Some scholars argue that there is no true or correct definition due to terrorism being an abstract concept without a real presence.

In the Middle Ages, maritime nations in Europe sponsored pirates and privateering against rivals, which can be compared to terrorism.

[7][8] Terrorism within the European Communities since 1951 has often been linked to separatist movements, including the Irish Republican Army within the United Kingdom, and Euskadi Ta Askatasuna within Spain.

Among those arrested on terror-related crimes, most were religiously motivated and form the largest group, followed by separatist related terror suspects.

[12] In 2017, British intelligence MI5 said that Northern Ireland is the most concentrated area of terrorist activity "probably anywhere in Europe", with weekly threats from dissident Irish republicans.

[14] In 2023, Hamas linked operatives, planning a terrorist attack, against Jews and Israelis in Denmark were arrested by the Mossad and Danish authorities.

[15] European states were at the fore of plans for an international criminal court under the League of Nations in the 1930s, working through the Committee for the Repression of Terrorism (CRT).

They have categorised acts of terrorism that have either failed, been foiled or been successfully executed within the European Union (EU) as either pertaining to religious issues, right-wing, left-wing or separatist movements.

The bill includes a ban on foreign travel for up to six months for those believed to hold terrorist sympathies, provides for the confiscation and invalidation of passports, and prohibits airlines from allowing such individuals to fly.

[17] From 2005, the United Kingdom government introduced the CONTEST strategy, which seeks to improve co-operation between security services, and other public and private organisations.

Similar strategies have been adopted by other countries across the European Union, and there have been increases in co-operation between nations and security forces.