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Rabat – US President Joe Biden said that the man who drove his vehicle into a crowd in New Orleans yesterday had posted videos to social media hours before the attack saying he was inspired by ISIS and expressing a desire to kill.
Biden, who described the attack as a “despicable” and “heinous act,” said on Wednesday evening that the FBI found the videos Jabbar posted to social media.
The attacker was identified as 42-year-old US Army veteran Shamsud-Din Jabbar. He was killed in a shoot-out with police during the attack, which took place in the early morning hours of New Year’s Day.
The attack claimed the lives of 15 people and injured dozens of others as people were crowding Bourbon Street to welcome the new year. Authorities are still establishing the identities of the 15 victims.
The FBI said they were investigating the attack as a terrorist act, noting that they found an ISIS flag in his vehicle.
They added that they did not believe he acted alone, though no arrests have been made yet.
AP News reported that investigators found guns and what appeared to be an improvised explosive device in his pick up truck, as well as other explosive devices.
Police are investigating whether there is a link between the attack and a separate incident involving a Tesla Cybertruck explosion outside the Trump Hotel in Las vegas. The incident killed the driver while seven others sustained minor injuries.
Gas canisters and fireworks were found in the vehicle, BBC reported.
In the wake of the two incidents, Donald Trump said that authorities and law enforcement agencies were “ineffective” and that there is “virtually non-existent leadership.”
