NYPD Report Looks at Domestic Terror Threat

New York, NY —

A new intelligence assessment from the NYPD finds the threat from "homegrown" terrorists is growing rapidly. WNYC's Bob Hennelly has more.

REPORTER: The NYPD analysis is based in a detailed review of several high profile terrorist attacks and plots that originated from self styled jihadist cells in places like the US, Canada, Australia and Europe. While the US conspiracies did not actualize, in London and Madrid they had catastrophic consequences.

The report says unifying factors in people drawn to the movement are young male Muslims, most likely middle class and alienated from their parents and looking for a purpose in life. The NYPD says the Internet is a virtual terrorist support network and is providing the same kind of affirmation would be terrorists might get in the middle east.

The report is being roundly criticized by Civil Liberties and Arab American Rights groups as a potential tool for profiling. For WNYC I am Bob Hennelly