EU warns of a chilling new terror menace 25 years after 9/11 as online youths seek violent thrills

BRUSSELS (AP) — A quarter of a century after the Al-Qaeda attacks on the United States, jihadist groups still pose a major threat to security in Europe, but a new menace has surfaced that is driven mostly by young people online and the authorities are worried.

The exact size of the network behind what is being called nihilistic violent extremism is unclear. But police investigators from nine European countries found about 4,340 URL web addresses linked to “The COM,” as the online community has become known, during a campaign to disrupt it in June and July.

“It’s violence for the sake of violence,” European Union Counter-Terrorism Coordinator Bartjan Wegter told The Associated Press in an interview, ahead of the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks on New York and Washington in 2001.

Overall last year, 45 terrorist attacks were reported across 10 of the 27 EU countries, although none of them were major, mass-casualty incidents. About half were foiled or failed, but six people were killed. A total of 486 people suspected of terror links were arrested in 21 member countries, according to the EU police agency Europol.

Jihadist groups — often guided or inspired by networks outside Europe — were behind 24 of the attacks and accounted for more than 70% of the arrests.

Of all those taken into custody, around one third were aged under 18, mostly boys.

Europol does not keep statistics on nihilistic violent extremism because definitions of it differ and acts can fall into the category of ordinary criminality as well as terrorism.

But in Finland in 2025, a 16-year-old boy stabbed three female student colleagues. He allegedly shared a “manifesto” in WhatsApp groups, recorded the attack on Snapchat, and asked on social media for someone to save and give him the video after his release.

In the “manifesto,” he said that he wanted to do something “significant” and “exciting.” No political motive was given for his rampage, according to an EU document on the emerging threat of nihilistic extremist violence.

“It’s very much a fascination with violence. It’s violence as a means of asserting oneself, as a means of gaining status in those online communities,” Wegter told AP. “There’s not a direct link with ideology.”

In Italy last year, a 15-year-old boy planned a murder to gain notoriety online, authorities there said. He kept images and videos of assaults, murders, school shootings and child pornography on his smartphone.

Wegter said these kinds of incidents, which have been on the rise for two to three years, are not isolated but organized by online networks that are “often driven by young people, for young people often involving young boys.”

He said that they “lead to offline violence. We’ve seen stabbings, a young individual stabbing an elderly person for no reason whatsoever.”

Such attacks are tough to prevent or track. They often involve “young individuals who will not have a criminal record, usually, who don’t leave any footprints other than online perhaps, but then it’s often behind encrypted walls and communities,” Wegter said.

High on the list of groups authorities’ radar is 764, which was founded by an American high school dropout, Bradley Cadenhead. He’s serving an 80-year prison sentence for child pornography and sex offenses, but the group still functions.

In Germany last year, a 20-year-old man believed to be a leading 764 member faced 123 charges over acts of “an unimaginable level of brutality and inhumanity,” including murder, rape and the sexual abuse of children, the EU document said.

Unlike 25 years ago — when extremists, mostly from Saudi Arabia, entered the United States and trained to become deadly pilots — the terror threat facing Europe today is mostly organized online.

“The online environment, for all the good things it brings, it is still too permissive,” Wegter said. He described it as “a petri dish for the connection between different threats.”

Privacy advocates insist that people have a fundamental right to communicate without unjustified intrusion. They accuse the authorities and some companies of undermining protections through spyware and other methods.

But Wegter said that “our law enforcement must be equipped with the instruments and tools to deal with the threat as it exists today.” He noted that 85% of investigations take place in the digital environment. “It means that we have to adjust ourselves to that.”

For the Dutch diplomat himself, it means talking more to authorities and organizations in other countries, notably those that such groups use as a rear base. “Because what happens outside our borders impacts on our security,” including what’s being amplified online, he said.

Europol said criminals are exploiting images and audio to create and edit propaganda, including through deepfakes, memes and GIFs. AI-powered bots were also used to boost recruitment and promote terrorist ideologies, while AI-driven app were used for research to prepare attacks.

“The kind of violent content, violence inciting content, propaganda, manuals, tactics, everything that is available, is very much amplified by AI,” Wegter said.

European Union Counter-Terrorism Coordinator Bartjan Wegter poses prior to an interview with The Associated Press in Brussels, Thursday, Sept. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)

European Union Counter-Terrorism Coordinator Bartjan Wegter speaks during an interview with The Associated Press in Brussels, Thursday, Sept. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)

European Union Counter-Terrorism Coordinator Bartjan Wegter pauses before answering questions during an interview with The Associated Press in Brussels, Thursday, Sept. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)

European Union Counter-Terrorism Coordinator Bartjan Wegter speaks during an interview with The Associated Press in Brussels, Thursday, Sept. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Shohei Ohtani went 0 for 3 with two strikeouts and a walk in his return to the Los Angeles Dodgers' lineup Monday night after a four-day break to deal with lingering left knee and right biceps soreness. The two-way superstar isn't expected to pitch again this season.

He was in his usual leadoff spot as the designated hitter for the series opener against the Cincinnati Reds, a 6-3 win by the Dodgers.

“I'll be focusing on hitting,” Ohtani said through a translator after the game. “I'm confident that my overall performance should be better moving forward. The thing that I was more focused on was to make sure that the pitching wouldn’t cause the worse scenario, which was for me to not be able to play at all.”

Ohtani hasn’t pitched in a game since July 3 and hasn’t thrown since a bullpen session in Detroit on Aug. 28.

Speaking to the media for the first time in three weeks, Ohtani said he's disappointed not to be pitching.

“But I want to make sure that when I look back this season that I use this as a learning experience and use that as something to improve upon for next season,” he said.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said he would see how Ohtani felt after the game before deciding on his status for Tuesday.

“It was certainly good to get him back out there, but there was certainly nothing to kind of write home about,” Roberts said. “To take four days off, to come out of it feeling good, I think that’s a win in itself.”

The NL West-leading Dodgers won all four games during Ohtani’s absence, including a sweep of the Washington Nationals.

By taking pitching off Ohtani's plate, the Dodgers hope the four-time MVP will lock in on hitting and get back on track after not appearing to be himself at the plate.

“As long as I’m playing in games, it’s not exactly the best way to recover and heal,” Ohtani said. "Of course, the best mode of recovery is to completely not play. But right now I just want to make sure that I’m playing, playing well and just focusing on the now.”

Ohtani is hitting .277 with 30 homers and 80 RBIs this season. Since the All-Star break, however, he’s batting .246 with eight homers and 22 RBIs in 42 games.

“Yes, he loves pitching, loves being a two-way player,” Roberts said before the game, “but right now it just doesn’t make any sense. It’s more of what’s best for the team, number one, and 1A, what’s best for him."

Utility player Tommy Edman took Ohtani's place as the leadoff hitter for four games. He went 7 for 17 (.412) with one home run, four RBIs and five runs. Edman started at second base and batted third on Monday.

Asked why he doesn't move Ohtani out of the leadoff spot, Roberts replied: “I think he’s our best hitter. I think the best player should have the most latitude. Is it forever? I don’t know. Is it until the end of the season? I don’t know yet.”

See AP’s full MLB coverage here

Los Angeles Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani, right, walks back to the dugout after striking out as Cincinnati Reds catcher Tyler Stephenson throws the ball back during the third inning of a baseball game Monday, Sept. 7, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Los Angeles Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani flies out during the first inning of a baseball game against the Cincinnati Reds, Monday, Sept. 7, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Los Angeles Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani watches from the dugout during the first inning of a baseball game against the Cincinnati Reds, Monday, Sept. 7, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Los Angeles Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani walks back to the dugout after striking out as during the third inning of a baseball game against the Cincinnati Reds, Monday, Sept. 7, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Los Angeles Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani, center, looks on during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Washington Nationals, Friday, Sept. 4, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/William Liang)