Tragic pickup truck crash and subsequent Tesla Cybertruck explosion in New Orleansin las vegasLet us remind you that the threat of terrorism remains a deadly reality in the United States
There is no indication yet that the two attacks were coordinated. It's likely a coincidence, but that doesn't stop us from linking them to promoting political agendas and conspiracy theories. This coincidence caused even more public anxiety.
In the coming days, we will likely learn more about the perpetrators, including their motives, collaborators, and funding. For now, it is clear that the New Orleans attack was intended to inflict heavy casualties.It was so.
Las Vegas attackas a resultAlthough the driver was killed and bystanders injured, the vehicle used (a Tesla) and the venue chosen (the Trump Hotel) suggest a political message.
Advance preparations showed that both attacks were planned. The New Orleans attackers rented vehicles, obtained firearms, and manufactured explosive devices. The FBI believes they worked alone.
The Las Vegas attack involved renting a vehicle through the same peer-to-peer app, filling it with some type of explosive or incendiary material, and detonating it at a symbolic location. This could have been accomplished by one individual, but let's see if others were involved.
Vehicle ramming attacks are not a new phenomenon.
According to the vehicle surveyramming attackOur research at the Mineta Transportation Research Institute shows that while the first incident occurred in Taipei in 1964, when an angry bus driver drove his car over and killed people, there were other vehicular attacks. There may have been an incident.
In 1973, a mentally unstable woman living in Czechoslovakia decides to take revenge on the hatred she feels from society and her family. She rammed her truck into people waiting for a tram in Prague, killing eight people and injuring 12 others.
These were and still are rare events. None of the myriad terrorist organizations that emerged in the 1960s and 1970s employed this tactic.
vehicle rammingIt became a terrorist tactic in the 1990s when Palestinian drivers began targeting off-duty Israeli soldiers waiting at bus stops. Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad have called for vehicle ramming attacks, which began to increase in the 2000s and have sharply increased since 2014. By 2016, vehicular ramming had become the second most common and deadliest form of attack in Israel.
Historically, both al-Qaeda and ISIS encouraged their followers to carry out vehicle ramming attacks. In 2010, an online magazine published by al-Qaeda proposed using the vehicle as “.mowerTo defeat the enemies of Allah.
The article's authors advised attackers to choose a pickup truck, preferably with four-wheel drive, to choose a pedestrian-only area, and to accelerate into crowds. This article also discussed a modification that attaches steel blades to the grille to cut through the vehicle.victim. No such change was observed in ramming attacks.
ISIS published a similar article in 2016, alsogruesome language. The “crusaders” would be demoralized by “vehicles that suddenly plow onto busy sidewalks and plow into crowds, crushing bones and severing limbs.”
The ISIS article was published four months after the deadliest jihadist vehicle ramming attack.Nice, France On July 14, 2016, a driver plowed a large cargo truck into a crowd watching Bastille Day fireworks, killing 86 people and injuring hundreds more.
More than a jihadist exhortation, the Nice attack served as an inspiration to others.reflect the contagion effect. Vehicle ramming attacks occur in clusters. However, the planning for the New Orleans attack likely preceded the Dec. 21 New Orleans vehicle ramming attack.magdeburg, germany5 people died.
German authorities said the driver in the incident showed signs of mental illness.disease. Excluding attacks in Israel and the Palestinian Territories, official statements and media reports suggest that individuals with a known or possible mental disorder make up more than 40 percent of the attackers. They also account for almost half of the total deaths.
According to our dataright-wing extremists appear in 20 percent of incidents but cause less than 5 percent of deaths. Individuals inspired by jihadist ideology account for only 8% of attacks, but more than a quarter of the deaths. However, the lines between categories are blurred, as attackers often have a mix of personal issues and ideological zeal.
Unlike other forms of terrorist attacks, most of which occur in conflict zones in developing countries, most vehicular ramming attacks occur in developed countries, with nearly three-quarters of attacks and almost all deaths occurring in developed countries. Europe and the United States account for half of the total.
Approximately half of all vehicular ramming attacks occur in the United States alone, but these account for only 9% of fatalities, as many ramming attacks occurred during the Black Lives Matter movement.protests. The death toll in the New Orleans attack rose to 15 (including the driver), exceeding the eight killed in the New Orleans attack.2017 bike path attackNew York was also influenced by ISIS.
China will bear the burden 11 percent 40 percent of attacks, 40 percent of deaths. France, Germany and the UK together account for about 15% of attacks and 43% of deaths.
More than half of attackers use their own or a family member's car. In some cases, your vehicle may be stolen. in5 percentIn some cases, we rent vehicles. However, rental car attacks are the deadliest, accounting for more than a quarter of all deaths. Rental vehicles reflect advance planning and renters can purchase larger vehicles.
Almost every element of the New Orleans attack has been seen before. These included the use of a rental car, an attack on pedestrians gathered at a public event, the additional use of firearms and explosives, and the eventual confrontation with police that resulted in the death of the driver. .
There is also plenty of precedent for the Las Vegas car explosion. In 2007, police found two cars packed with explosives parked outside a London nightclub. The next day, two of the attackers crashed a jeep containing propane gas cylinders into Glasgow Airport terminal.
2010jihadists parked an SUV loaded with incendiary devices in New York's Times Square. In 2020, a huge bomb inside an RV parked in downtown Nashville, Tennessee, exploded, killing the bomb maker and injuring eight others. The motive for the attack is not clear, but like many similar cases, it may have been a combination of factors.
The country, which got through voting day without major violence, is once again on the brink of crisis. What happens next?
Uncertainty is prevalent. Security will be beefed up for upcoming events in Washington, D.C., including the January 6th Congressional electoral vote count, former President Carter's funeral, and the inauguration. Security will also be tight at major sporting events, including bowl games, the ongoing College Football Playoffs, and the upcoming NFL Playoffs.
On the other hand, there is no doubt that social media fuels rumors, accusations, and conspiracy theories. That we have been here before and endured is a source of cold comfort to those who are afraid today.
Brian Michael Jenkins is the director and Bruce R. Butterworth is a senior fellow at the Mineta Transportation Research Institute's National Center for Transportation Security.
