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Global Terrorism Index 2025: Terrorism Spreads as Lone Wolf Attacks Dominate the West

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LONDON, March 5, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — The number of countries recording a terrorist attack increased from 58 to 66, according to the 12th annual Global Terrorism Index (GTI) released today. This reverses nearly a decade of improvements, with 45 countries deteriorating and 34 improving. The four deadliest terrorist groups intensified their violence in 2024, driving an 11% rise in fatalities. In the West, lone wolf attacks now dominate, accounting for 93% of fatal attacks over the past five years.

Key Findings:

The Sahel region remains terrorism’s epicentre, accounting for over half of all global terrorism deathsIslamic State (IS) expands its operations to 22 countries and remains the deadliest organisation, causing 1,805 deaths, with 71% of its activity being in Syria and DRCTehrik-e-Taliban (TTP) emerged as fastest-growing terrorist group, with 90% increase in attributed deathsDeaths in sub-Saharan Africa (excluding the Sahel) are now at their lowest since 2016, dropping by 10%Terrorist attacks jumped by 63% in the West, Europe was most affected where attacks doubled to 67In 2024, several Western countries reported one in five terror suspects as under 18, with teenagers accounting for most IS-linked arrests in EuropeSeven Western countries are in the first 50 most impacted countries on the GTIAntisemitic and Islamophobic hate surged globally, with the US seeing a 200% rise in antisemitic incidents in 2024

The Gaza conflict has intensified instability in the Middle East and is fuelling hate crimes in the West, while terrorism deaths surged in Iran. Global terrorism deaths remained constant in 2024, after allowing for the October 7 attack. The four deadliest terrorist groups escalated their violence, causing an 11% rise in terrorism fatalities. The most deaths from terrorism were in Burkina Faso, Pakistan and Syria. Burkina Faso is responsible for one fifth of all deaths globally.

Islamic State (IS) remains the deadliest organisation, causing 1,805 deaths across 22 countries in 2024, one more than the prior year. IS was most active in Syria and the DRC. IS Khorasan Province (ISK) has emerged into one of the most active jihadist groups worldwide, conducting major attacks in Iran and Russia. Since 2020, ISK has expanded from one country to five, producing propaganda in nine languages. Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) is the fastest-growing terrorist organisation, with deaths rising 90% to 558.

The GTI is produced by international think tank the Institute for Economics & Peace (IEP) and has been published annually for the last 12 years. It is the most comprehensive resource on global terrorism trends and uses multiple factors to calculate its score, including the number of incidences, fatalities, injuries and hostage numbers, before combining these with conflict and socioeconomic data to provide a holistic picture of terrorism.

Steve Killelea, Founder & Executive Chairman, IEP: “This year’s Global Terrorism Index highlights two key concerns; firstly, 98% of all terrorist deaths occurred in conflict zones, with 2024 recording the highest number of conflicts since the end of the WWII. Secondly, social tensions and dissatisfaction within the West are fuelling lone actor terrorism. 93% of all fatal terrorist attacks were caused by lone actors. The best way to control terrorism is to stop or reduce the number of conflicts. In addition, the Gaza conflict has been, and still is, a catalyst for antisemitism and Islamophobia.”

Western nations face new terror landscape

The majority of Western attacks are now carried out by individuals without formal group affiliations, who radicalise through social media, gaming platforms and encrypted messaging apps. The shift towards online radicalisation has enabled potential terrorists to access extremist content, and organise with minimal physical contact. Algorithmic radicalisation on popular social media sites can drive users toward progressively more extreme content over time.

The West saw its first major rise in terrorist incidents since 2017, with attacks increasing from 32 to 52. Sweden, Australia, Finland, the Netherlands, Denmark and Switzerland registered their first attacks in more than five years. Germany was Europe’s worst-performing nation, placing 27th globally following the Magdeburg Christmas market attack.

In the UK, under-18s accounted for 42% of 219 terror arrests last year[1], reflecting a broader Western trend where youths account for one in five terror suspects. They typically lack ties to established groups and can combine contradictory extremist ideologies.

Sahel remains global terrorism epicentre

Terrorism in the Sahel has increased significantly, with deaths rising nearly tenfold since 2009. Weak governance, ethnic tensions, and ecological degradation have created a conducive environment in which terrorism can flourish. The Sahel accounts for 51% of 2024’s terrorism deaths, with Burkina Faso, while improving overall, remained the most affected nation for a second year. Six of the ten countries in the region recorded at least one fatality. Togo recorded its worst year for terrorism since the inception of the Index, reflecting the spread of terrorist activity beyond the Sahel.

Competition over the region’s mineral resources has contributed to ongoing instability. Gold is a major flashpoint in Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger. Niger supplies more than 25% of European uranium. Russian presence has grown significantly in the region while France is withdrawing.

Niger illustrates the fragility of progress in the region. After achieving the second-largest improvement in 2022, it experienced a reversal in the last two years, recording a 94% increase in terrorism deaths to 930 fatalities in 2024, the largest surge globally. 

Terrorism in the Middle East

Although the Middle East recorded a 7% reduction in terrorist attacks in 2024 to 618, the resurgence of violence between Israel and Palestine continues to destabilise the region. Both Israel and Syria ranked among the ten most impacted countries globally.

Since 2020, traditional foreign influence in Syria has diminished, with Russia, China, and Iran reducing their roles while Turkey emerges as a dominant regional power. The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), once a key partner of the US in the fight against IS, now faces mounting challenges. Turkey’s opposition to a strengthened SDF, coupled with the potential scaling back of US support, has created conditions that IS could exploit to regain influence. The new US administration’s position on the SDF is still unclear.

Hate speech and the US

Hate crimes escalated sharply for both the Jewish and Muslim communities in the US following the Gaza war, with FBI-recorded incidents targeting the Jewish community rising by 270% in just two months. Anti-Muslim hate increased at a similar rate, with reported incidents of Islamophobia rising by 300% in the same period. Similar patterns emerged in Europe and Australia, with 31% of all Western attacks motivated by antisemitic or anti-Israel sentiment. 

While the US bucked the trend of other Western countries in 2024, with only one death from three attacks, 2025 will be a worse year. The January attack in New Orleans where an IS-pledged individual killed 15 people highlights that concerns remain about a resurgence of terrorist activity. Globally there were a total of 24 foiled plots linked to IS or affiliated groups, including a high-profile plot targeting Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna, but it is likely that many more were prevented.

Terror groups exploit technology surge

Terrorist organisations are rapidly adapting to emerging technologies, transforming their operations through artificial intelligence and encrypted communications. Intelligence agencies report that ISK has markedly expanded its digital arsenal, producing AI-enhanced video content and sophisticated online magazines in multiple languages.

The group deploys encrypted messaging platforms and cryptocurrency for fundraising, whilst using AI to create localised propaganda aimed at foreign targets. Their reach now spans from Central Asia to North America, demonstrating how digital platforms have reshaped terrorist recruitment and operations.

This technological evolution poses new challenges for security services, as extremists increasingly exploit encrypted apps and dark web forums for radicalisation and operational planning. AI also creates opportunities for intelligence services to analyse larger amounts of information, and detect radicalisation earlier.

Contacts

GTI2025@bcw-global.com

Notes to Editors

The full GTI 2025 report and interactive map are available at: visionofhumanity.org

X: @GlobPeaceIndex

Facebook: facebook.com/globalpeaceindex

Global Terrorism Index (GTI)

The GTI by the Institute for Economics & Peace provides a comprehensive summary of the key global trends and patterns in terrorism over the last 17 years. The report ranks 163 countries (99.7 per cent of the world’s population) according to the impact of terrorism. The indicators include the number of terrorist incidents, fatalities, injuries and hostages.

The GTI report is produced using data from TerrorismTracker and other sources. TerrorismTracker provides event records on terrorist attacks since 1 January 2007. The dataset contains over 73,000 terrorist incidents for the period 2007 to 2024.

Institute for Economics & Peace

The Institute for Economics & Peace (IEP) is the world’s leading think tank dedicated to developing metrics to analyse peace and to quantify its economic value. It does this by developing global and national indices, including the annual Global Peace Index, calculating the economic cost of violence and understanding Positive Peace which is the attitudes, institutions and structures that create and sustain peaceful societies.

[1] Counter Terrorism Policing, UK, 2024 – https://www.counterterrorism.police.uk/number-of-young-people-arrested-for-terrorism-offences-hits-record-high/ 

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Noah Holdings Opens Thangka Intangible Cultural Heritage Exhibition in Shanghai, Celebrating a New Generation of Inheritors

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“The Call of the Third Pole — Visage of the Future” Runs April 26 Through July 31 at the Noah N+ Art Center

SHANGHAI, April 28, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Noah Holdings Limited (“Noah” or the “Company”) (NYSE: NOAH and HKEX: 6686), an AI-native wealth management firm headquartered in Singapore and serving global Chinese families, recently opened a themed exhibition of Thangka intangible cultural heritage at the Noah N+ Art Center in Shanghai.

As global wealth becomes increasingly cross-border and multi-generational, families are finding that cultural continuity matters just as much as financial allocation.

The exhibition, titled “The Call of the Third Pole — Visage of the Future,” presents works by new-generation inheritors of Regong arts and Thangka tradition. Their artistry bridges centuries of tradition with contemporary expression, offering a glimpse into the future of this ancient craft.

The opening coincides with the Symposium on the High-Quality Inheritance and Innovative Creation of Intangible Buddhist Civilizational Art, reinforcing the Noah N+ Art Center’s role as a space where cultural preservation and wealth management intersect to serve the needs of global Chinese families.

A Six-Century Tradition, Seen Through the Eyes of Its Next Generation

Thangka is a form of Tibetan Buddhist scroll painting with more than six centuries of documented lineage, originating on the Tibetan Plateau and often described as “the language of the Third Pole.”

The exhibition presents works by a selected cohort of next-generation inheritors of the Regong and Menthang schools, the two most influential lineages in Thangka painting. Hailing from Lhasa and Shigatse in Tibet, as well as from Regong, the renowned hometown of intangible cultural heritage Thangka art, the artists have an average age of under 40, and most began formal apprenticeships between the ages of 8 and 10.

A single Thangka can take anywhere from six months to several years to complete, using mineral pigments such as malachite, cinnabar, and pure gold. Each piece adheres to the precise iconometric canons of the Sutra of Iconometric Measurements. Recognized for its cultural significance, Thangka was inscribed on China’s first National List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2006, and Regong Arts was inscribed on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2009.

For many high-net-worth families, preserving such traditions is no longer separate from wealth planning. It is part of how they define and transfer value across generations.

Where Cultural Heritage Meets Wealth Stewardship

The exhibition is the second major curatorial project of the Noah N+ Art Center, following its inaugural exhibition, “Hub: The Endless Exploration of Art”. Guided by the philosophy of “art as life,” it reflects Noah Holdings’ broader commitment to fostering cultural preservation as an extension of its mission to serve global Chinese families, whose needs increasingly span asset allocation, wealth inheritance, and longer-horizon questions of cultural continuity.

“Long-lasting value, whether financial or cultural, is not measured in cycles. It is nurtured across generations. We are seeing a growing number of global Chinese families realize this and integrate both financial and cultural heritage into their longer-term vision of wealth.” Zander Yin, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Noah Holdings, said, “Asset allocation is our profession, and cultural grounding supports how we create value. By presenting the work of a new generation of Thangka painters before their work has gained wider recognition, we provide clients with early and exclusive access to cultural value. We see this as consistent with how we approach allocation itself: identifying value before it is fully priced.”

For global Chinese families whose inheritance questions now span jurisdictions and generations, cultural continuity has become part of the conversation about wealth itself. The Noah N+ Art Center is built around that longer horizon: it is a place to connect with a living tradition, and more importantly, engage with the artists shaping its future before everybody else does.

Exhibition Information & Reservations
Dates: April 26–July 31, 2026
Venue: Noah N+ Art Center, Hongqiao International Business District, Shanghai
Hours: Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00 – 18:00 (closed Mondays)

Special Programs (running throughout the exhibition period):

Weekend curator-led guided toursOn-site dialogues with participating Thangka painters (limited seating; by reservation only)Third Pole Tea Gatherings, themed afternoon sessions

Reservations: https://promotion.noahgroup.com/activity/prod/jNkpMZbPn1

About Noah Holdings

Noah Holdings Limited (NYSE: NOAH | HKEX: 6686) is an AI-Native wealth management firm headquartered in Singapore, dedicated to being where global Chinese wealth connects. The firm serves high-net-worth families and distinguished institutions worldwide.

Founded in 2005 and dual-listed on the New York Stock Exchange (2010) and the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (2022), Noah brings over 23 years of disciplined wealth stewardship. With four global booking and trading centers across Singapore, Hong Kong SAR, Shanghai, and the United States, Noah has allocated over US$153 billion in cumulative assets for clients spanning nine countries and more than 30 jurisdictions.

Noah serves clients through three flagship brands — ARK Wealth Management (Human + AI Integrated Global Wealth Management Platform), Olive Asset Management (Global Asset Allocation Platform), and Glory Family Heritage (Global Family Legacy & Lifestyle Platform). Together, they form an integrated global wealth management system under a unified governance framework, guided by wealth expertise with deeper global Chinese insight.

Beyond financial services, Noah’s Global N+ Ecosystem unites global Chinese families across generations through curated experiences in art, music, and culture. The inheritance of wealth ultimately returns to the inheritance of culture and spirit, and it is this that defines Noah’s philosophy: Wisdom Beyond Wealth.

For more information, please visit: https://www.noahgroup.com/.

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SOURCE Noah Holdings Limited

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Sole Cybersecurity Partner ThreatBook in Successful ‘STEALTHNET’ Exercise

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Major exercise completed with the Hong Kong Police Force, INTERPOL, and Agencies and Forces from Macau SAR, Singapore and South Korea

HONG KONG and SINGAPORE, April 28, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — ThreatBook played a mission-critical role in Hong Kong’s recent Counter Cyber and Physical Terrorism Joint Exercise 2026, staged on 16 April. The exercise, codenamed “STEALTHNET”, was organised by the Hong Kong Police Force (HKPF) in collaboration with INTERPOL, and police forces and agencies from other jurisdictions, to enhance counter-terrorism preparedness across various sectors, and strengthen preparedness for terrorist activities and large-scale international attacks.

Participating overseas public sector bodies included the Macao Judiciary Police, the Singapore Police Force, the Cyber Security Agency of Singapore, and the Korean National Police Agency.

As a key partner of the HKPF’s Cyber Security and Technology Crime Bureau (CSTCB), the region’s cybersecurity special operations unit, ThreatBook proudly served as the sole cybersecurity provider for this exercise. The company provided comprehensive technical support and intelligence analysis services throughout the event, collaborating with the various law enforcement agencies and infrastructure operators to jointly strengthen cross-border counter-terrorism security defenses.

The large-scale simulation brought together more than 380 participants, including representatives from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority and several banks. Hong Kong’s Police Commissioner, Joe Chow Yat-ming, attended and oversaw the exercise, providing guidance.

The event focused on the increasingly complex global hybrid terrorist threats, simulating a variety of realistic emergency scenarios to comprehensively test the collaborative response capabilities of all parties. The exercise remained closely aligned with core cross-border counter-terrorism requirements throughout. It simulated scenarios involving the financing of terrorist activities and simultaneous attacks by cross-border terrorist organizations on financial institutions, the aviation industry, and healthcare systems across the four jurisdictions of Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR, Singapore and South Korea.

The exercise also simulated high-risk situations such as the placement of explosive devices at large-scale event venues and drone-induced disruptions. The exercise tested the participating units’ capabilities in intelligence sharing, rapid response, joint handling, and coordinated operations under high-pressure conditions — further strengthening the cooperative ties between law enforcement agencies and critical infrastructure operators in participating jurisdictions.

As a leading player in Asia’s cybersecurity sector, ThreatBook leveraged its extensive threat intelligence resources and professional technical expertise to play a mission-critical role throughout the entire exercise. ThreatBook’s teams in  Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR and Singapore each executed their responsibilities unhindered while coordinating and collaborating closely. The different teams conducted precise cyber threat intelligence analysis, and provided technical guidance and recommendations on critical aspects such as malware attack techniques and threat dissection, thereby assisting local police forces in efficiently identifying and addressing cyber threats.

“With the rapid proliferation of digitalization globally, the convergence of cyberattacks and terrorist activities has become increasingly evident. Cross-border threats know no boundaries, and defense efforts likewise require cross-border coordination. ThreatBook’s invitation to participate in this exercise not only reflects the high recognition of its technical capabilities by the HKPF and various partner organizations; but also serves as a concrete manifestation of its commitment to its mission of safeguarding digital security,” said Mr. Chase Li, Co-founder and Managing Director of International Business at ThreatBook.

The company’s participation further demonstrates its robust capabilities in protecting critical information infrastructure and responding swiftly to cross-border threats. Previously, ThreatBook was appointed as a member of the HKPF’s Cyber Security Action Task Force (CSATF) and has repeatedly provided support and assistance for regional cybersecurity efforts.

Looking ahead, ThreatBook will continue to deepen its expertise in the cybersecurity field, focusing on the security needs of the Hong Kong and Macau regions. The company will strengthen its close collaboration with law enforcement agencies and industry partners in Hong Kong and Macau regions.

By continuously optimising threat intelligence and security defense technologies, ThreatBook aims to empower security through technology and counter threats through collaboration. In doing so, the company will not only play a pivotal role in maintaining the security, stability, public order, and healthy development of the digital economy in the Hong Kong and Macau regions — it will also continue to provide professional cybersecurity support to Singapore and beyond, safeguarding the security of the global digital space.

About ThreatBook

ThreatBook is a global cybersecurity company specializing in advanced threat intelligence, detection, and response. Founded in 2015, ThreatBook equips enterprises, governments, and service providers with the clarity and context needed to defend against evolving digital risks.

By combining artificial intelligence with deep threat intelligence, ThreatBook delivers real-time visibility, hyper-accurate detections, and early-warning insights against nation-state actors, cybercriminal groups, and emerging attack campaigns. With unique vantage points from across the Asia Pacific region and beyond, ThreatBook provides intelligence coverage that bridges Eastern and Western threat landscapes, offering an unmatched perspective for global defenders.

ThreatBook: Act with Intelligence that Matters. To learn more, visit www.threatbook.io or follow us on LinkedIn.

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Market Logic extends DeepSights Personas with synthetic panels and flexible persona generation to redefine audience research at scale

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DeepSights Personas’ new Persona Builder and Synthetic Panel capabilities transform how quickly insights, innovation, and marketing teams can deepen audience understanding with the latest data to make faster, evidence-based decisions

BERLIN, April 28, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Market Logic Software, a leader in AI-powered market intelligence and insights, today launched major new capabilities in DeepSights Personas, enabling enterprises to run rapid, forward-looking audience intelligence at scale without sacrificing research rigor. The new Persona Builder and Synthetic Panel features empower business teams to create highly specific, data-backed synthetic personas on the fly and run quantitative validation at scale.

Enterprise insights, product, and marketing teams face an ongoing challenge with the slow and costly process of running audience research that is static and soon outdated. By connecting the generation of virtual personas directly to a company’s proprietary knowledge base, the DeepSights Persona Builder makes it simple to refresh personas with the most relevant and current data it has. This ensures consistently high-quality synthetic feedback that is completely grounded in trusted data and adapts in real time to new information.

The introduction of an AI interviewer agent allows time-pressed teams to run in-depth research with chosen personas and uncover new insights across audience segments.

With the DeepSights Synthetic Panel, companies can run quantitative research on new concepts in hours rather than days then refine further before committing resources to real-world customer validation. AI agents create an on-demand panel based on defined audience attributes, run surveys across specified questions, capture both scores and underlying reasoning, apply research-grade statistical analysis, and deliver a clear summary of implications.    

“To be a market leader today means moving faster than your competitors to anticipate consumers. Act too slowly and you miss the market opportunity. Act in haste on guesswork and you risk wasting millions in budget. Today’s DeepSights Personas announcement helps enterprises overcome this dilemma. It empowers them with special-purpose AI, to make robust, evidence-backed decisions on launching campaigns and products that will resonate with their consumers,” said Olaf Lenzmann, Chief Product and Innovation Officer, at Market Logic Software.

A new model for audience intelligence

DeepSights Personas address a wide spectrum of high-impact use cases, including:

Rapidly screening product concepts and claims across regionsExploring hard-to-reach or emerging audience segmentsStress-testing campaign messaging early in developmentInspiring innovation through deep persona-led exploration

DeepSights Personas can be deployed as a standalone solution or fully integrated into a comprehensive active intelligence system powered by Market Logic’s unique AI intelligence engine, DeepSights. Unlike passive knowledge repositories, DeepSights continuously uncovers findings from across data sources, detects market signals, and triggers alerts to connect intelligence to business workflows proactively.

About Market Logic

Market Logic is the leading provider of market intelligence and insights solutions. By using DeepSights, our special purpose AI for insights technology, expert teams equip business decisions makers across their enterprise with trusted insights at scale and speed. For more than 15 years, we’ve helped hundreds of consumer-focused brands across the globe transform into insights-driven businesses. Market leaders such as Unilever, Vodafone, Bayer, and Philips are driving innovation and making smarter market moves with the support of Market Logic. Find out more at https://marketlogicsoftware.com/

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