What Is an NVE? The FBI's Latest Term for Tracking Extremist Threats

The killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk has reignited debate over rising political extremism in the United States—and sharpened focus on a new category of domestic threat being tracked by federal law enforcement: nihilistic violent extremism, or NVE.

While the FBI has not categorized the suspect, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, as an NVE, the term has surfaced in media reports and political discourse since Kirk was shot during a public event at Utah Valley University on September 10.

Prosecutors have charged Robinson with aggravated murder, alleging that he fired a bolt-action rifle from a rooftop as Kirk answered student questions. Evidence produced by authorities, including messages between Robinson and another person, suggest the suspect was indeed driven by leftist political ideology...