Terrorist attack in New Orleans

BlueRidge

BlueRidge

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My heart goes out to FSUers and their friends and relatives and everyone in New Orleans. Another horrible tragedy. :(

www.nytimes.com

New Orleans Attacker Was ‘Inspired’ by ISIS, Biden Says

Investigators who briefed President Biden told him that the suspect had posted videos indicating that he had a “desire to kill.” At least 15 people died in the attack.
www.nytimes.com www.nytimes.com

ETA: From the NY Times: "The driver of the pickup truck is dead after getting into a shootout with police after he ran over pedestrians and crashed, according to two law enforcement officials speaking on condition of anonymity because the investigation is ongoing. The incident is being investigated as a suspected act of terrorism, the officials said."

ETA: Well the Mayor of New Orleans says it was a terrorist attack but the FBI says it wasn't. In any case it is a horrible "mass casualty event." :(
 
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A few details trickling out, reported by the Guardian:

No surprise he acted alone as that seems to be the case most of the time:

Louisiana congressman Troy Carter, a Democrat who also sits on the House Homeland Security Committee, has said he understands that the suspect in the mass killing in New Orleans acted alone.

There is very little information out in the public arena so far about the suspect, who is now dead. CNN reported that his truck had Texas licence plates.

Carter spoke to CNN and said “he appears to be a lone actor at this point.”
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And this:

A senior law enforcement source briefed on the attack told the Guardian that a short-term rental home linked to the suspect in New Orleans’ St Roch neighborhood, less than two miles from the scene of the incident, was on fire Wednesday morning.

An emergency management source told the Guardian that numerous residents in the area surrounding the home were evacuated, because there were apparently explosives inside the home. The owner of the home did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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Horrific attack.

The truck had a Texas license plate. There was also a flag attached to the back of the truck. Unconfirmed, but it appears to be an ISIS flag and has been reported as such by some traditional media. (I'll edit the post if this turns out to be false.)

This man seemed intent on killing as many people as he could, so sadly I think this is a terrorist attack (ISIS or not). I also wonder if it's a copycat from the horrific German Christmas market massacre. :(
 
:eek:

The suspect accused of plowing a truck through a crowd on Bourbon Street is named Shamsud Din Jabbar, according to a law enforcement source.

He's 42 years old. Police shot and killed him after the attack.



The source said he was carrying an ISIS flag in the truck.
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www.nola.com

New Orleans attack suspect named, accused of killing at least 10, injuring dozens

A source said he was carrying an ISIS flag in the truck when he plowed through a crowd on Bourbon Street.
www.nola.com www.nola.com

ETA: The Guardian reports that it was a black flag and authorities are trying to determine if it was an ISIS flag.
 
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No comment on the shooter or his motives :(, at least none that wouldn’t take us far into PI territory.

I was wondering why there weren’t bollards or other safety precautions as these types of attacks are sadly commonplace from this group and others. It turns out there were, and they were in the process of being removed at 3 am when the suspect attacked.

Security needs to do a much better job in the future. Leave them until the following day. It’s frustrating and terrifying that both this attack and the German Xmas market attack happened despite heavy security and seemingly appropriate precautions :(. What a horrible, senseless tragedy.
 
With increased security measures in cities like NY or Chicago and repeated assurances by police and others, it seems to me someone was expecting something to happen somewhere. But that is my personal thought.
 
An eyewitness interviewed by CNN states that New Orleans has hydraulic steel street barricades designed to prevent these type of car attacks which they chose not to deploy last night.

Some folks won't like this account but it's the first clip I've found of the CNN interview and it's worth a watch -

https://twitter.com/x/status/1874492029440581695

What an appalling security failure for the city that this could have been prevented or minimized.

Aishah Hasnie of Fox News (based in DC) is reporting that there are at least 4-5 other suspects involved.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1874514405121204258
 
FBI confirms the Islamic State flag:

An Islamic State flag, weapons and a “potential” improvised explosive device were found in the vehicle, the F.B.I. said, and other potential bombs “were also located in the French Quarter." Investigators working to determine the suspect's "potential associations and affiliations with terrorist organizations," the statement said.
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(NY Times)
 
once_upon said:
With increased security measures in cities like NY or Chicago and repeated assurances by police and others, it seems to me someone was expecting something to happen somewhere. But that is my personal thought.
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Apparently, New Orleans installed the hydraulic barriers after a drunk driver caused a mass injury incident at Mardi Gras a few years ago. Even if you aren't thinking there will be a deliberate attack like last night, it seems to me that public planners & officials should certainly anticipate a stupid drunk driver on a night like NYE.

The truck the driver had was apparently a rental, which explains the Texas plates. Hasnie's sources are also indicating that the rifle the suspect had was reported stolen from NJ last week.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1874512517667729808

There are also unconfirmed reports that the Sugar Bowl (College Football Playoff Quarterfinal #4 between Notre Dame & Georgia) has been postponed until tomorrow - it's supposed to be the last game of the day starting at 8:45pm ET.
 
Karen-W said:
Apparently, New Orleans installed the hydraulic barriers after a drunk driver caused a mass injury incident at Mardi Gras a few years ago. Even if you aren't thinking there will be a deliberate attack like last night, it seems to me that public planners & officials should certainly anticipate a stupid drunk driver on a night like NYE.

The truck the driver had was apparently a rental, which explains the Texas plates. Hasnie's sources are also indicating that the rifle the suspect had was reported stolen from NJ last week.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1874512517667729808

There are also unconfirmed reports that the Sugar Bowl (College Football Playoff Quarterfinal #4 between Notre Dame & Georgia) has been postponed until tomorrow - it's supposed to be the last game of the day starting at 8:45pm ET.
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Agree. I'm sure you are watching football - I imagine by half time there will be confirmation
 
Maybe too much of an assumption but it sounds like if he couldn’t get through with the truck then he would use the gun. 340 million in this country and one ass**** wreaks so much havoc.
 
Cachoo said:
Maybe too much of an assumption but it sounds like if he couldn’t get through with the truck then he would use the gun. 340 million in this country and one ass**** wreaks so much havoc.
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The FBI "confirms that two I.E.D.s had been found and disposed of." NY Times reports.

One report I saw said they are still looking into whether anyone else was involved, this was a lot for one guy but he may just have been hellbent on causing horrible destruction.

UPDATE: The Guardian reports “We do not believe Jabbar is solely responsible,” an FBI agent said. "While Shamsud-Din Jabbar has been named as a suspect, the FBI said is looking for his possible accomplices in the attack."
 
New York Times is saying that the FBI has said it cannot rule out an ongoing threat.

I saw that it was being considered whether the Sugar Bowl would be postponed, has anyone else seen about that?

ETA: Times report just now that the Sugar Bowl will be postponed for 24 hours. :eek:
 
BlueRidge said:
Suspect is American and served in the US Army for many years according to the NY Times.

That's making me think of the Fort Hood shooter.
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That's what I thought of too when I was reading some of the reports this morning.

Per this screenshot, the suspect made a couple of small dollar donations to Act Blue in 2014 & 2020. I'm not sure what conclusions can or should be drawn from this given the donations were such small amounts and not anytime recently.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1874532234096730119

BlueRidge said:
The FBI "confirms that two I.E.D.s had been found and disposed of." NY Times reports.

One report I saw said they are still looking into whether anyone else was involved, this was a lot for one guy but he may just have been hellbent on causing horrible destruction.
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Latest reports indicate the FBI does not believe he was working alone.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1874535851696238787

Official confirmation the Sugar Bowl has been postponed -

https://twitter.com/x/status/1874536698807534044
 
Bourbon Street is always busy, but New Year’s Eve seems like a particularly bad time to have the bollards out of commission (and publicized on a website). I guess the plan was to have them done by Mardi Gras.

“In response to vehicle attacks on pedestrian malls around the world, New Orleans was in the process of removing and replacing the steel barriers known as bollards that restrict vehicle traffic in the Bourbon Street pedestrian zone. The project's status was unclear at the time of Wednesday's attack. Construction began in November 2024 and was scheduled to continue through February 2025, according to a city website.”

 
I read elsewhere that he used an electric truck. Given the fires that can result from EVs, I wonder if it was a deliberate strategy to blow up an EV in a densely populated area. If it wasn't, I'm sure it will be the next time. :(

ETA: apparently, the widespread belief that EV fires are so much worse than normal vehicle fires is a myth. They need to be fought differently than internal combustion fires, and foam doesn't work on them like it would work on an oxygen fed fire, but they are not 'impossible.'
 
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University of Georgia has issued a statement and indicated one of the people who was critically injured is a student
 
NYT said most of his life was spent in Beaumont, Texas. He worked in HR and IT in the armed forces. He was divorced twice—once in 2012 and 2022. They found email asking for the divorce process to proceed faster because he was in serious financial trouble. They found but did not show a video of him promoting real estate.
 
Cachoo said:
NYT said most of his life was spent in Beaumont, Texas. He worked in HR and IT in the armed forces. He was divorced twice—once in 2012 and 2022. They found email asking for the divorce process to proceed faster because he was in serious financial trouble. They found but did not show a video of him promoting real estate.
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There were some links to a YT video of him for his RE business - I presume they'll be removed before the end of the day.
 
How evil---revelers that included a lot of college kids enjoying New Years and this special time for their respective schools.
 
Rob said:
Bourbon Street is always busy, but New Year’s Eve seems like a particularly bad time to have the bollards out of commission (and publicized on a website). I guess the plan was to have them done by Mardi Gras.

“In response to vehicle attacks on pedestrian malls around the world, New Orleans was in the process of removing and replacing the steel barriers known as bollards that restrict vehicle traffic in the Bourbon Street pedestrian zone. The project's status was unclear at the time of Wednesday's attack. Construction began in November 2024 and was scheduled to continue through February 2025, according to a city website.”

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I'm not sure when Mardi Gras falls this year, but other reports are that the plan was to have the renovation done before the Super Bowl, which is being hosted by New Orleans this year.

Either way, starting work in November with the goal of being ready for the Super Bowl instead of starting work in September with the goal of being ready for NYE and the Sugar Bowl is a major planning & security failure on the part of the city.
 
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In possibly related news... A Tesla cybertruck exploded in front of the Trump Tower in Las Vegas. It was also rented using the same auto rental app (Turo - can't say I've heard of that one) that was used to rent the EV truck in New Orleans.
 
Karen-W said:
In possibly related news... A Tesla cybertruck exploded in front of the Trump Tower in Las Vegas. It was also rented using the same auto rental app (Turo - can't say I've heard of that one) that was used to rent the EV truck in New Orleans.
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I don't think it's related. There have been issues with exploding Tesla cybertruck batteries.
 
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