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Join on Telegram Rabat – The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have issued a warning to law enforcement agencies across the US alerting them to the possibility of more attacks similar to the truck-ramming incident that occurred in New Orleans on Wednesday.
They released a joint bulletin warning that vehicles could be used in future attacks aimed at causing mass casualties.
The deadly New Orleans attack occured early Wednesday morning when a man drove a rented pick up truck into a crowd of people, killing at least 14 and injuring over 30 others. People were crowding Bourbon Street to welcome the new year.
The suspect, indentified as 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Jabbar, was killed in a shoot-out with police during the attack. He is a citizen and army veteran from Texas.
According to authorities, Jabbar drove from Houston to New Orleans the night before the attack and posted videos online showing his support for ISIS.
The FBI believes that Jabbar was inspired by ISIS, as they found their flag in his vehicle. The FBI are investigating the attack as a terrorist act.
The joint bulletin urged law enforcement to watch for signs of potential attacks, such as attempts to rent vehicles using false documents and online activity calling for violence.
It added that vehicle ramming attacks are “likely to remain attractive for aspiring attackers” due to the simplicity of obtaining a vehicle and the “low skill threshold necessary” to carry out such an attack.
The bulletin further warned that the “the surge in vehicle-ramming attacks in 2016 and 2017 suggests that successful attacks — particularly in the West — may inspire similarly motivated actors to adopt the same method.”
