'Vigilance and security' needed to combat terror threats from 'lone wolves', Taoiseach says 

Micheál Martin said such attacks are 'probably the number one danger in Ireland'

Speaking in Cyprus on Thursday, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said the gardaí have “always warned” that this is the one area where there is a “potential possibility”.  File picture: Juliane Sonntag/Photothek/Getty 

Taoiseach Micheál Martin has said that good security and intelligence are required to prevent “lone wolf attacks”.

He suggested that these attacks are “probably the number one danger in Ireland”.

As reported by the Irish Examiner on Thursday, Ireland’s new security oversight judge, George Birmingham, warned in The Office of Independent Examiner’s 2025 annual report that there is “unease” about the “activities of hostile state actors” and the potential threat of “lone wolves” — individuals acting on their own for terrorist or other reasons.

Speaking in Cyprus, Mr Martin said the gardaí have “always warned” that this is the one area where there is a “potential possibility”.

“In other words, lone wolf attacks is probably the number one danger in Ireland, and we've seen some evidence of that in terms of various attacks in the last year or two,” the Taoiseach said.

“That remains an ongoing concern, and political people and people more generally, have been warned about the prospect of that.

“I welcome the report of the Independent Examiner. I'm not surprised about that conclusion because we've been briefed about lone wolf attacks from the Gardaí and the Defence Forces in the context of the National Security Council that we've convened.

“That is a feature of modern societies. We're not immune from it, no more than any other society or nation. 

Therefore, vigilance is required, and good security and good intelligence is required, insofar as possible to prevent such attacks.

The Office of Independent Examiner was provided for in the Policing, Security and Community Safety Act 2024, enacted in April 2025.

The office is tasked with reviewing the operation and effectiveness of security legislation, examining the effectiveness and delivery of security services, and adjudicating on disputes between An Garda Síochána and oversight bodies.

Mr Martin is in Cyprus for an informal meeting of the European Council, which will discuss geopolitical challenges, including the conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine.

The Taoiseach welcomed the EU approval of a €90bn loan facility for Ukraine, saying it is “very significant in terms of Ukraine's capacity to navigate and defend itself”.

“[It] sends a very strong signal that Europe is in there for the long haul behind Ukraine,” he said.

• Louise Burne is Political Correspondent.