New Year’s Day Attack in New Orleans Involved Rare Explosive, Law Enforcement Reports

 

(TJV) In the early hours of New Year’s Day, a terrorist attack in New Orleans left 14 people dead and 35 injured. According to senior law enforcement officials cited by NBC News, the perpetrator, Shamsud-Din Jabbar, also prepositioned two bombs containing an exceptionally rare explosive compound, which has never before been used in attacks in the United States or Europe.

Jabbar, a 42-year-old U.S. Army veteran, carried out the attack at approximately 3 a.m. on Wednesday. He drove a rented Ford F-150 pickup truck through a crowd on Bourbon Street, killing and injuring dozens before being fatally shot by police. His plans for additional destruction involved two improvised explosive devices (IEDs), concealed in recreational coolers and rigged to detonate via a transmitter found in the truck. Fortunately, the bombs did not explode, and investigators are analyzing whether this was due to a flaw in their design, a malfunction, or Jabbar’s failure to trigger them. Security footage captured him placing the coolers on Bourbon Street before the attack.

The FBI released a photo of one cooler containing an IED. While officials have not disclosed the name of the rare explosive, they confirmed it marked its first known use in terrorist attacks in the U.S. or Europe. Investigators are now probing how Jabbar acquired the knowledge and materials to construct the bombs. A Pentagon spokesperson, quoted by Task & Purpose, noted that Jabbar’s military background likely did not contribute to his bomb-making skills. Jabbar served in the U.S. Army as a Human Resource Specialist and IT Specialist from 2007 to 2015, followed by service in the Army Reserve until 2020. He deployed to Afghanistan from 2009 to 2010 and achieved the rank of Staff Sergeant.

Jabbar’s rented truck bore an ISIS flag, and he posted videos to Facebook hours before the attack, pledging allegiance to the terror group. In the videos, Jabbar expressed that he had considered targeting his family and friends but refrained, fearing it would detract from his intended message about a “war between believers and disbelievers.” He was armed with an AR-15 and a handgun at the time of the attack.

Authorities discovered further evidence of Jabbar’s plans in a short-term rental house he had set ablaze before the attack. While accelerants were positioned throughout the home, the fire self-extinguished without spreading. Inside, investigators found bomb-making materials and a homemade silencer. Similar materials were recovered from Jabbar’s Houston residence in a predominantly Muslim neighborhood.

The FBI has mobilized additional resources, deploying 200 personnel to New Orleans to assist in the investigation. According to the bureau’s Friday statement, nearly 1,000 tips have been received, and officials are analyzing extensive data from New Orleans street cameras.

While initial investigations suggested potential accomplices, the FBI now believes Jabbar acted alone. “At this point, we do not assess that anyone else was involved in this attack other than Shamsud-Din Jabbar,” said Christopher Raia, deputy assistant director of the FBI’s counterintelligence division.

Jabbar’s younger brother, Abdur Jabbar, speaking to the New York Times, emphasized that his brother’s actions did not reflect Islam. “What he did does not represent Islam. This is more some type of radicalization, not religion,” he said.