KEY POINTS
- A truck attack in New Orleans killed 15 and injured around 35 on New Year’s Day.
- A Tesla Cybertruck exploded outside Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas, killing one.
- Authorities are probing a possible link between the two incidents.
- The New Orleans attacker is identified as Shamsud Din Jabbar, a US citizen and Army veteran.
- Officials warn Jabbar may not have acted alone; manhunts and investigations are underway.
NEW YORK: United States authorities were investigating Thursday a potential connection between a fatal truck assault in New Orleans and a deadly explosion outside the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas, both of which occurred on Wednesday, US President Joe Biden said.
The Las Vegas incident killed one person, injured seven, and forced an evacuation of the hotel, as terrified guests fled the building on Wednesday afternoon. The explosion occurred after a Tesla Cybertruck caught fire and exploded in the valet area.
This explosion came just hours after a truck attack in New Orleans’ French Quarter during the early hours of New Year’s Day, which killed 15 people and injured around 35 others. The proximity of the two incidents in timing and nature has heightened scrutiny from law enforcement.
“We’re tracking the explosion of a cyber truck outside the Trump Hotel in Las Vegas,” Joe Biden said in public remarks. “Law enforcement and the intelligence community are investigating this as well, including whether there’s any possible connection with the attack in New Orleans. Thus far, there’s nothing to report on that score at this time.”
The FBI said the attack at 3:15 a.m. in New Orleans’ French Quarter is being investigated as an act of terrorism.
The driver in the attack has been identified by the FBI as Shamsud Din Jabbar, a 42-year-old US citizen and Army veteran who lived in Texas. Jabbar appeared to be carrying an ISIS flag and was dressed in military gear, the FBI said. He appeared to have been a real estate agent working in Houston and had served as an IT specialist in the military.
“The ISIS flag was found in his vehicle, which he rented to conduct this attack. Possible explosives were found in the vehicle as well and more explosives were found nearby,” Biden said.
Biden said a Tesla Cybertruck which exploded outside Trump’s Las Vegas hotel on Wednesday morning was also being investigated and authorities were looking into whether the two events were connected.
FBI Probes ‘Terrorist’ Links
US authorities were investigating the New Orleans attack. Officials said they were searching for accomplices but gave few details.
Police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick described Jabbar as a “terrorist,” and the FBI said “an ISIS flag was located in the vehicle,” using another name for the Islamic State group.
Biden, describing the attack as “despicable,” said Jabbar had posted videos online hours before “indicating that he was inspired by ISIS.”
Biden also said that law enforcement agencies were probing any possible links between the attack and an explosion later on Wednesday of a Tesla Cybertruck outside a hotel owned by US President-elect Donald Trump in Las Vegas, though he cautioned that none had been found so far.
Officials said Wednesday a manhunt was underway, with FBI agent Alethea Duncan warning that authorities “do not believe that Jabbar was solely responsible.”
Hunting Bad People Down
Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry said: “We’re hunting some bad people down.”
The FBI said it was conducting search warrants in New Orleans “and other states.” Earlier, the bureau’s field office in Houston, Texas said it was conducting activity “related” to the New Orleans attack.
An FBI spokesman told AFP that 15 people had been killed in the attack, citing the New Orleans coroner’s office.
Aiming for Carnage
Police said the incident began around 3:15 am (0915 GMT) near Bourbon Street in the heart of the French Quarter, packed with people celebrating the start of 2025.
The suspect drove a white Ford F-150 electric pickup into a group of pedestrians, then exited and was killed in a shootout with police — two of whom were wounded. Two homemade bombs were found and neutralised, the FBI said.
“This man was trying to run over as many people as he possibly could,” Kirkpatrick told reporters.
Driving at “very high speed” and in a “very intentional” manner, “he was hellbent on creating the carnage and the damage that he did,” Kirkpatrick said.
The Pentagon said Jabbar had served in the Army as a human resources specialist and an IT specialist from 2007 to 2015, and then in the army reserve until 2020.
Biden said that “thus far, there’s nothing” linking the New Orleans attack with the Las Vegas explosion, which police described as an “isolated” incident.
ALSO READ: New Orleans Attacker Inspired by ISIS: Biden
The vehicles in the two incidents were both rented through the popular car-sharing app Turo. The sheriff in Las Vegas said that was a “coincidence… that we have to continue to look into.”
A spokesperson for the app, used by millions of people in the United States, said they were working with law enforcement.
“We do not believe that either renter… had a criminal background that would have identified them as a security threat,” the spokesperson told AFP.
Horror in Famous Neighbourhood
In the early hours of the year’s first day, revellers were celebrating in the French Quarter, renowned for its bars, restaurants, jazz history and Mardi Gras parties.
Bystander Zion Parsons said the revelry turned into a scene of horror.
“There were bodies and blood and all the trash,” he told CNN. “People were terrified, running, screaming.”
Another witness, Jimmy Cothran, told ABC that the mayhem left “10 bodies — six clearly, graphically deceased,” and others “yelling with no one around.”
New Orleans is one of the most heavily visited destinations in the United States and will host the Super Bowl next month.
The attack came just hours before the city was due to put on the Sugar Bowl, a major college football game. It was delayed until Thursday.
