An increasing number of arrests related to domestic terrorism is being fuelled in part by white supremacy, FBI director Christopher Wray said during a Senate hearing on Tuesday.

Testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee, the director said his agency has already made nearly 100 domestic terrorism-related arrests this year, a figure already higher than that of the entirety of 2018.

“A majority of the domestic terrorism cases we've investigated are motivated by some version of what you might call white supremacist violence," Mr Wray said during an exchange with Senator Dick Durbin.

“But it includes other things as well,” he added.

Reports have previously indicated a rise in white supremacist attacks globally in recent years. The Centre for the Study of Hate & Extremism at California State University concluded in March that “white nationalism has reflected a coarsening of mainstream politics, where debates on national security and immigration have become rabbit holes for the exploitation of fear and bigotry.”

Violence on the streets of Charlottesville Show all 9 1 /9 Violence on the streets of Charlottesville Violence on the streets of Charlottesville Protesters clash and several are injured White nationalist demonstrators clash with counter demonstrators at the entrance to Lee Park in Charlottesville, Virginia. A state of emergency is declared, August 12 2017 Violence on the streets of Charlottesville Trump supporters at the protest A white nationalist demonstrator walks into Lee Park in Charlottesville, Va., Saturday, Aug. 12, 2017. Hundreds of people chanted, threw punches, hurled water bottles and unleashed chemical sprays on each other Saturday after violence erupted at a white nationalist rally in Virginia. AP Photo Violence on the streets of Charlottesville State police stand ready in riot gear Virginia State Police cordon off an area around the site where a car ran into a group of protesters after a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia AP Photo Violence on the streets of Charlottesville Militia armed with assault rifles White nationalists, neo-Nazis and members of the 'alt-right' with body armor and combat weapons evacuate comrades who were pepper sprayed after the 'Unite the Right' rally was declared a unlawful gathering by Virginia State Police. Militia members marched through the city earlier in the day, armed with assault rifles. Getty Images Violence on the streets of Charlottesville Statue of Confederate General Robert E Lee The statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee stands behind a crowd of hundreds of white nationalists, neo-Nazis and members of the 'alt-right' during the 'Unite the Right' rally 12 August 2017 in Charlottesville, Virginia. They are protesting the removal of the statue from Emancipation Park in the city. Getty Images Violence on the streets of Charlottesville Racial tensions sparked the violence White nationalists, neo-Nazis and members of the 'alt-right' exchange insults with counter-protesters as they attempt to guard the entrance to Lee Park during the 'Unite the Right' rally Getty Violence on the streets of Charlottesville A car plows through protesters A vehicle drives into a group of protesters demonstrating against a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. The incident resulted in multiple injuries, some life-threatening, and one death. AP Photo Violence on the streets of Charlottesville Rescue personnel help injured people after a car ran into a large group of protesters after an white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia AP Photo Violence on the streets of Charlottesville President Donald Trump speaks about the ongoing situation in Charlottesville, Virginia from his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey. He spoke about "loyalty" and "healing wounds" left by decades of racism.

“Our most recent police data, found a spike in many large US cities around election time 2018 as well,” Brian Levin, director of the centre, wrote in Time Magazine.

He added: “We also found Ideologically motivated murders by white supremacists increased in 2018 to 17, from 13 in 2017, while violent Salafist Jihadist killings dropped to only one.”

Other studies have shown right-wing extremists are typically the suspects in domestic terror related incidents across the US, including a June 2017 study conducted by Reveal and the Centre for Investigative Reporting that said they were involved in more domestic terrorism incidents than “Islamists” and “left wing” combined.

Mr Wray revealed the latest figures surrounding domestic terror related incidents at Tuesday’s hearing, a day before Special Counsel Robert Mueller was set to testify before two Congressional committees about Russian interference in the 2016 election and Donald Trump’s alleged obstruction of justice.

The FBI director also said on Tuesday that Russia was continuing to carry out efforts to interfere in American elections, despite the agency providing “significant resources devoted” to the issue.

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“The Russians are absolutely intent on trying to interfere with our elections through the foreign influence," he said.