Thu Jan 02 05:18:07 UTC 2025: ## Terror Attack Rocks New Orleans French Quarter on New Year’s Day
**New Orleans, LA** – A horrific attack in New Orleans’ French Quarter on New Year’s Day has left at least 15 people dead and over 30 injured, prompting a full-scale FBI terrorism investigation. The incident occurred at 3:15 am local time as a pickup truck, driven by 42-year-old US citizen and Army veteran Shamsud-Din Bahar Jabbar, plowed through a crowd celebrating on Bourbon Street.
The driver, who police described as “hell-bent on creating carnage,” bypassed a police barricade before speeding into the throng of revelers. Two police officers were injured during a subsequent shootout with Jabbar. The FBI has confirmed that potential explosive devices, including pipe bombs, were found both in the vehicle and within the French Quarter itself. A flag associated with the Islamic State group was discovered on the truck’s trailer hitch.
Surveillance footage obtained by authorities shows three men and a woman placing at least one improvised explosive device, according to a Louisiana State Police intelligence bulletin. The FBI’s New Orleans field office assistant special agent in charge, Alethea Duncan, stated that investigators believe Jabbar did not act alone.
The Sugar Bowl college football playoff game, scheduled for the nearby Superdome, was postponed to Thursday night due to the attack. The incident has raised serious concerns about the increasing use of vehicles as weapons in mass casualty attacks, a tactic law enforcement officials are struggling to effectively counter. The FBI is currently investigating Jabbar’s potential ties to terrorist organizations. This attack follows a similar incident in Magdeburg, Germany last month, where a vehicle was used to attack a Christmas market, resulting in multiple fatalities. The investigation is ongoing.
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