27 October 2020, 08:48 GMT
"57 completed, failed and foiled terrorist attacks in the European Union (reported by Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy and Spain); 21 people died because of terrorist attacks in the European Union", the agency stated.
449 individuals were arrested on suspicion of terrorism-related offences in 17 EU Member States, a decrease of one-third compared with previous years, Europol added.
According to the report, the terrorist threat increased during the COVID-19 pandemic period over such factors as stress caused by the virus-related situation and affecting the mental health of vulnerable individuals leading them to violence. Another factor was an increase in disinformation, hate speech, and radical ideologies actively disseminated online during the coronavirus crisis.
