25 Years After 9/11: Top Experts Assess the Terror Threat

U.S. law enforcement arrested an agent of Kata’ib Hizballah, an Iranian-backed terrorist group, who allegedly planned attacks at several cities across the country, according to recent reporting. The operation coincided with a joint U.S.-Nigerian raid that killed a senior ISIS member, Abu Bilal al-Minuki, highlighting ongoing tactical counterterrorism efforts twenty-five years after the 9/11 attacks.

Shifting Strategic Priorities and Counterterrorism Policy

Despite tactical successes, analysts have expressed alarm over the newly released United States Counterterrorism Strategy. The document marks a distinct departure from previous strategies by incorporating narco-traffickers into the realm of terrorism. While illicit fentanyl and trafficking networks drove opioid-involved overdose deaths to a peak of just over 81,000 in 2022—up from nearly 50,000 in 2019—that crisis has since receded, with total drug overdose deaths dropping 24 percent between 2023 and 2024.

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Critics point out that U.S. demand for drugs drives the illicit trade, unlike the motives behind terrorist organizations. The strategy document also introduces references to threats from “radically pro-transgender” groups and Antifa, inclusions that have drawn skepticism from counterterrorism professionals regarding the actual existence or priority of such domestic threats.

Domestic Threats and Intelligence Gathering

While the strategy document highlights left-wing extremists, it omits mentions of threats from right-wing groups. Previous editions of U.S. counterterrorism strategy documents emphasized right-wing factions, supported by data indicating that right-wing violence has accounted for approximately 80 percent of U.S. domestic terrorism deaths since 2001. Between 2022 and 2024, every extremist killing in the U.S. was carried out by a right-wing extremist, a trend juxtaposed in public discourse with the high-profile killing of media pundit Charlie Kirk by a left-wing extremist in 2025.

Edward Bogan, a former senior CIA operations officer with extensive counterterrorism experience, noted that much of the document reads as politically performative and focused on perceived domestic threats, raising concerns about the potential weaponization of government power against political rivals.

International Alliances and Operational Realities

Counterterrorism remains a collaborative effort dependent on international allies. Although the new strategy document pays lip service to the value of alliances, analysts note that tasks such as collecting intelligence on groups like Antifa would strain relations with foreign partners. Nevertheless, European allies who might be reluctant to share intelligence on Russia are still expected to cooperate regarding active terror plots directed against the United States, leaving the broader institutional approach to international intelligence-sharing in an unresolved diplomatic posture.

Photo: newsweek.com