Lone wolf terrorism in Norway

Lone‐Actor Terrorist Target Choice

“…All studies agree that preparatory conduct is typical, though the degree to which individuals engage in it varies (Spaaij, , ). Existing research is also generally in agreement that a low level of sophistication characterizes the weapons and methods used in lone‐actor attacks (Ackerman & Pinson, ; Appleton, ; Bakker & de Graaf, ; Barnes, ; Jasparro, ).…”

“…There is not yet a distinct theme within the literature on lone‐actor terrorism that focuses specifically on attack preparation, though one would expect that increasing our understanding of what happens pre‐attack will significantly strengthen preventative efforts (Appleton, ). Gill et al () found that lone actor attacks are "rarely sudden and impulsive" (p. 434), although anecdotal evidence of recent ISIS‐inspired attacks suggests this may be changing.…”

Lone Actor Terrorist Attack Planning and Preparation: A Data‐Driven Analysis,

“…The designation lone actor extremist remains a subjective one. There is an ongoing debate on what constitutes a lone actor terrorist . A distinction can be made in the literature between definitions that focus on individual terrorists operating completely autonomously of extremist groups or networks , those that operate autonomously but do or did participate in such groups , and isolated dyads or even triads of individuals that operate jointly but lack ties to a larger extremist organization or movement .…”

“…Lone actor extremist violence is generally described as the result of forethought and planning, with at least some form of preparatory conduct being observed . The attacks and their preparation tend to be relatively unsophisticated, owing to inter alia the smaller pool of resources and relevant skills that individuals have at their disposal . Firearms appear to be the weapon of choice, closely followed by the use of explosives .…”

‘The Capability Spectrum; Locating Terrorism in Relation to other Manifestations of Political Violence.’

“…The choice of targets an insurgency will select will often differ to that of a terrorist attack; an insurgency, using predominantly guerrilla tactics, is likely to focus on tactical locations, such as bridges, supply routes or areas on which 'hit and run' attacks can be carried out, in order to disrupt or destabilise the opposition (as demonstrated by the actions of the French Maquis throughout Occupied France (Wright 1962;Millar 2013)). Terrorist attacks normally select symbolic targets -such as urban transport (for example the London 7/7 bombings), key figures (such as police or magistrates by the Red Brigade (Moss 1983)), or governmental buildings (the Oslo bombings by Breivik (Appleton 2014)). The purpose of selecting symbolic targets is to communicate a message to a wider audience, not for tactical or strategic benefit (in terms of disrupting or defeating an opposing government).…”