Colorado terror attack adds to alarming rise in US domestic terrorism
Colorado police responded to a terror attack at a pro-Israel event in Boulder Sunday, leaving multiple people injured.
It was the latest incident being investigated by federal authorities as domestic terrorism.
The U.S. has seen an increase in antisemitic attacks and violent pro-Palestinian protests amid the war between Israel and Hamas.
But the incidents of domestic terrorism aren't limited to antisemitism. Extremists who hold anti-American sentiment have attempted attacks on vehicles, military bases and more.
Here is a breakdown of the domestic terrorism incidents in the U.S. in 2025:
Boulder, Colorado, Police Chief Stephen Redfearn said his department received reports early Sunday afternoon of a man with a weapon and people being set on fire on Pearl Street. A male suspect with minor injuries was taken into police custody at the scene, Redfearn said.
Suspect Mohamed Sabry Soliman is now facing murder, assault and other charges following what the FBI called a "targeted terror attack" in Boulder, Colorado.
The violence against a pro-Israel group advocating for Hamas to release Israeli hostages left eight people, ages 52 to 88, with injuries, including one in critical condition, according to the FBI. Police responded to the area after receiving reports of a man with a weapon setting people on fire.
"Run for Their Lives," was the organization hosting the event. The group organizes run and walk events calling for the immediate release of all hostages being held captive by Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
Soliman was charged with murder in the first degree — deliberation with intent; murder in the first degree — extreme indifference; crimes against at-risk adults/elderly; 1st degree assault — non-family; 1st degree assault — heat of passion; criminal attempt to commit class one and class two felonies; and use of explosives or incendiary devices during felony.
Soliman was also in the United States illegally, Fox News has learned. Soliman is an Egyptian national who came into the country two years ago and overstayed his visa.
Boulder Police Department confirmed Monday that no victims have died.
Soliman was booked into the Boulder County, Colorado, jail Sunday evening and remains held on a $10 million bond.
On Wednesday, May 21, Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim, two staffers of the Embassy of Israel to the U.S. — a couple set to be engaged — were shot and killed as they left the museum's event focused on finding humanitarian solutions for Gaza.
Lischinsky was born in Israel and grew up in Germany. His father is Jewish, and his mother is Christian. Milgrim was an American employee of the embassy.
Authorities took Elias Rodriguez, a 31-year-old man from Chicago, into custody. Upon being taken into custody, Rodriguez began shouting, "Free, free Palestine!"
The FBI is investigating the incident as a possible hate crime and investigating any ties to terrorism.
Steven Jensen, the assistant director in charge of the FBI Washington field office, said in a news conference that the federal law enforcement entity is working alongside the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) to "look into ties to potential terrorism or motivation based on a bias-based crime or a hate crime."
On May 17, a bombing took place at a fertility clinic in Palm Springs, California. The bombing killed the suspect and injured four others.
Authorities identified the perpetrator of the incident as a 26-year-old suspect motivated by a fringe ideology known as "pro-mortalism."
"Pro-mortalism," a radical offshoot of anti-natalism, views human reproduction as inherently immoral and embraces death as a moral corrective.
According to federal and local law enforcement, the suspect targeted the American Reproductive Centers facility specifically to destroy human embryos stored on-site.
Surveillance footage and online postings suggest he parked in the rear of the building to remain unnoticed, ingested drugs and then detonated an explosive device — killing himself in the process.
The FBI has classified the bombing as an act of domestic terrorism, citing the ideological motivation behind the violence.
Officials have said that it is the first high-profile case linked to the pro-mortalist ideology and are now monitoring it as a potential emerging threat. Authorities have urged families and communities to remain vigilant for signs of ideological extremism, especially among those who may feel disenfranchised.
In May, a former Michigan Army National Guard member, Ammar Abdulmajid-Mohamed Said, 19, was arrested for allegedly planning a mass shooting near the U.S. Army's Tank-Automotive & Armaments Command (TACOM) center at the Detroit Arsenal in Warren, Michigan.
Said planned to carry out the attack on behalf of ISIS.
Said allegedly "launched his drone in support of the attack plan" and told an undercover FBI agent in the lead-up to the foiled plot he recommended that "everyone have about seven magazines because you don't want to be in there and run out of ammo," according to officials.
Said is now facing charges of attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization and distributing information related to a destructive device. He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years per count if convicted.
The FBI disrupted the attempted attack, with FBI Director Kash Patel telling Fox News Digital that any individual targeting the U.S. military or conspiring with foreign terrorist organizations will be "prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law."
"Let this be a warning: Anyone who targets our military or conspires with foreign terrorist organizations will be found, stopped and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law," Patel told Fox News Digital. "I commend the men and women of the Joint Terrorism Task Force and our law enforcement partners for their continued dedication to protecting the American people."
Since January, there have been a number of instances of vandalism, arson and targeted shootings against Tesla vehicles, dealerships, and charging stations across the nation.
Tesla vehicles and dealerships have been targeted nationwide amid Elon Musk's involvement with the Trump administration's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which has been focused on slashing wasteful spending and fraud within the federal government. Musk is the co-founder and CEO of Tesla.
The FBI launched a task force to crack down on violent Tesla attacks.
The FBI's task force was created in conjunction with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) and will coordinate investigative activity.
A threat tag has been created at the FBI to streamline reports and a command post at FBI headquarters has been created. It consists of a joint FBI/ATF task force to mitigate that threat stream.
The FBI is treating the attacks as "domestic terrorism." Attorney General Pam Bondi called the attacks on Tesla "domestic terrorism," and the Department of Justice announced charges against suspects in Tesla arson cases.
Musk spoke out against the "deranged" attacks, suggesting that "there's some kind of mental illness thing going on here, because this doesn't make any sense." The billionaire even alluded to "larger forces" potentially behind the attacks that have sprung up across the nation.
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The tax funds unemployment programs. (CCB noted in its petition that employees have separate unemployment coverage. Wisconsin bishops previously created the Church Unemployment Pay Program (CUPP) 'to assist parishes, schools, and other church employers in meeting their social justice responsibilities by providing church funded unemployment coverage.') CCB applied for an exemption under state law. The Department of Workforce Development determined that CCB and its sub-entities were not primarily operated for religious purposes and denied the exemption. CCB appealed, and after a hearing, the administrative law judge reversed the decision. However, the Labor and Industry Review Commission reversed the reversal (stay with me), finding that the exemption turns on an organization's 'activities, not the religious motivation behind them or the organization's founding principles.' Since CCB provided secular (non-religious) services, the Commission concluded that they do not qualify for an exemption The matter went to court (outside of the administrative channels) and ended up in the Wisconsin Supreme Court, which held on March 14, 2024, that CCB's 'activities are primarily charitable and secular' and not religious, which means it would not qualify for the exemption. CCB filed a petition for writ of certiorari with the Supreme Court in May of 2024. Parties do that when seeking a review of the case—typically, it's in response to another court decision. In that petition, CCB noted that in the 1980s, the U.S. Supreme Court granted review in two cases (St. Martin Evangelical Lutheran Church v. South Dakota and California v. Grace Brethren Church) to determine whether the imposition of state unemployment taxes on certain religious organizations under the Federal Unemployment Tax Act (FUTA) and related state statutes violated the First Amendment. But, CCB argued, while those cases were resolved, the Court expressly declined to answer the First Amendment questions, resulting in a split among courts. If the Supreme Court decides to hear a matter, it's called a grant of certiorari—by practice, at least four justices must vote to hear the case to be granted cert. Usually, cert is granted in a case of considerable importance or one involving a split. A split happens when courts disagree on a matter of federal law, reaching different conclusions about its application—that's what CCB argued happened here. In its petition, the questions presented by CCB were: The state argued that no split of authority existed on the constitutional question and further contended that the Wisconsin Supreme Court decision does not directly conflict with the decisions of any federal circuit or state high court. The Supreme Court disagreed with the state, granting certiorari in December of 2024. The scope of the case was, however, limited to Question 1. (Does a state violate the First Amendment's Religion Clauses by denying a religious organization an otherwise-available tax exemption because the organization does not meet the state's criteria for religious behavior?) Dozens of amici curiae briefs were filed before the decision. When it comes to legal issues before the Supreme Court, those with an interest or expertise in the subject but who aren't a party to the litigation may also file briefs to explain their point of view. These briefs are called amicus briefs and are filed by a party known as an amicus curiae, which translates to "friend of the court.' The U.S. Supreme Court determined that the Wisconsin Supreme Court's interpretation of the statute violated the First Amendment by discriminating against religious organizations based on their methods of religious expression. Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote for the Court, 'A law that differentiates between religions along theological lines is textbook denominational discrimination.' She went on to write that CCB would, under the state's interpretation, qualify for the exemption 'if they engaged in proselytization or limited their services to fellow Catholics.' However, CCB's Catholic faith, however, bars them from doing exactly that. That means, she explained, that eligibility for the exemption 'ultimately turns on inherently religious choices.' While the state argued that the exemption was intended to draw stark theological lines, Sotomayor went on to write that the exemption 'functions at an organizational level, covering both the janitor and the priest in equal measure.' The Court acknowledged the importance of the government maintaining 'neutrality between religion and religion.' But, Sotomayor wrote pointedly, 'There may be hard calls to make in policing that rule, but this is not one.' With that, the Wisconsin Supreme Court case was overturned. The news was welcome by the Diocese. 'At the heart of Catholic Charities' ministry is Christ's call to care for the least of our brothers and sisters, without condition and without exception,' said Bishop James Powers, Bishop of the Diocese of Superior. 'We're grateful the Court unanimously recognized that improving the human condition by serving the poor is part of our religious exercise and has allowed us to continue serving those in need throughout our diocese and beyond.' 'Wisconsin shouldn't have picked this fight in the first place,' said Eric Rassbach, vice president and senior counsel at Becket, who represented CCB. 'It was always absurd to claim that Catholic Charities wasn't religious because it helps everyone, no matter their religion. Today, the Court resoundingly reaffirmed a fundamental truth of our constitutional order: the First Amendment protects all religious beliefs, not just those the government favors.' The Wisconsin Labor & Industry Review Commission did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Justice Sotomayor delivered the unanimous opinion for the Court, while Justices Jackson and Thomas filed concurring opinions. The case is Catholic Charities Bureau, Inc., v. Wisconsin Labor & Industry Review Commission (No. 24–154).
