Connect with us
[bsa_pro_ad_space id=12]

International

FBI identifies Texas man as Bourbon Street attacker

Published

5 minute read

From The Center Square

By 

Sugar Bowl playoff game delayed to Thursday due to ‘terrorist incident’

The FBI has identified the driver of a truck that plowed into a crowd of people celebrating New Year’s on Bourbon Street early Wednesday, killing at least 10 people and injuring 35.

Shamsud-Din Jabbar, 42, a U.S. citizen and U.S. Army veteran from Houston, rented the F-150 Lightning truck, the FBI said. Alethea Duncan, an assistant special agent in charge of the FBI’s New Orleans field office, said the agency doesn’t believe he acted alone.

The law enforcement agency said in a news release that he had improvised explosive devices that were found in both the truck and two in different locations in the French Quarter, body armor and an ISIS flag hanging from the tailgate.

The FBI said it’s investigating whether Jabbar acted alone or had accomplices and has closed Bourbon Street, treating it as an active crime scene.

Wednesday night’s Sugar Bowl, a College Football Playoff semifinal pitting Georgia and Notre Dame, was postponed until Thursday, the bowl game said. A kickoff time, originally 8:45 p.m. Eastern on Wednesday, did not accompany the announcement.

The Caesar’s Superdome is in the Central Business District, about 20 blocks from the crime scene. It was also the site of the first Super Bowl after 9/11.

Jabbar drove into a group of revelers at 3:17 a.m. and got out of the truck, exchanging gunfire with New Orleans Police Department officers, injuring two of them, before Jabbar succumbed from his wounds, lawmen say.

New Orleans Police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick, the city’s police chief, said on Wednesday at a news conference that three officers engaged Jabbar with gunfire.

New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell said at a news briefing in New Orleans despite their injuries, the officers shot by Jabbar were doing well.

She also said there were malfunctions with some of the retractable bollards, the devices which prevent vehicles from accessing streets like Bourbon Street when open to only pedestrians.

She also said the bollards were to be repaired for the upcoming Super Bowl, which will be played in New Orleans on Feb. 9.

The FBI is directing those with tips for law enforcement, especially those who had interactions with Jabbar in the past 72 hours, to an FBI tip line website or via phone at 1-800-CALL-FBI.

“It’s all hands on deck, if you saw something, say something,” U.S. Rep. Troy Carter, D-La., said at the news conference. He also said the delay of the game was justified for safety reasons.

Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry said at a Wednesday news briefing that the city and state had been working around the clock to secure the city after he got the call from Cantrell at 3:45 a.m.

“We have made public safety a priority from day one,” Landry said. “We intend to be transparent to assessing any defects that might have existed in the system and make sure any mistakes are corrected. This city will have the resources necessary to protect our citizens and our guests. We’ve got an active investigation and we’re also working on enhanced security.”

The first-term Republican governor also said he’s issued a more expansive emergency declaration and mobilized a military police company of 100 guardsmen from the Louisiana National Guard to assist the New Orleans Police Department, the FBI and other agencies with investigating the incident.

Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill said “we will bring them to justice” and that she’d provide resources to both the city and the FBI to help with the investigation.

Kirkpatrick said the city has a plan and “we’re going to get these people. Very pleased that we will be back to having a wonderful game tomorrow night.”

Todayville is a digital media and technology company. We profile unique stories and events in our community. Register and promote your community event for free.

Follow Author

More from this author

International

Germany launches first permanent foreign troop deployment since WW2

Published on

MXM logo  MxM News

Quick Hit:

Germany activated a 5,000-strong armored brigade in Lithuania — marking its first permanent foreign military deployment since World War II. The move strengthens NATO’s eastern flank amid Ukraine’s ongoing conflict with Russia.

Key Details:

  • The 45th Armored Brigade was formally launched outside Vilnius on Tuesday.
  • Germany plans for the brigade to be fully operational by 2027 in Rūdninkai, near the Belarus border.
  • The deployment marks a major policy shift for Berlin and a boost for NATO’s deterrence posture.

Diving Deeper:

Germany has officially entered a new era of military engagement, launching its first permanent foreign troop deployment since the end of World War II. The move, announced Tuesday, sees the activation of a 5,000-strong armored brigade in Lithuania as part of a broader NATO strategy to counter the perceived threat from Russia.

The newly formed 45th Armored Brigade was ceremonially inaugurated outside the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius. German Brigadier General Christoph Huber assumed command, overseeing the establishment of a temporary headquarters and unveiling the unit’s crest. “We have a clear mission: to ensure the protection, freedom and security of our Lithuanian allies on NATO’s eastern flank,” Huber said, adding that the unit’s presence also directly contributes to the defense of Germany and NATO as a whole.

The deployment follows a pledge made by Berlin in 2023 — a decision that broke with decades of postwar defense policy rooted in military restraint. German officials had long avoided permanently stationing combat troops abroad. That posture has changed in response to Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine, which has turned the Baltic region into one of NATO’s most vulnerable frontlines.

Germany’s commitment includes more than just fighting forces. The brigade will also feature key support elements, such as a medical center, communications specialists, and command support units dispersed across multiple Lithuanian locations. Troops will initially operate out of temporary facilities, with a permanent base under construction in Rūdninkai, located roughly 30 kilometers south of Vilnius.

Currently, 150 German soldiers are already on the ground in Lithuania. That figure is expected to rise to 500 by the end of the year as the new brigade scales up operations.

Continue Reading

Censorship Industrial Complex

China announces “improvements” to social credit system

Published on

MXM logo  MxM News

Quick Hit:

Beijing released new guidelines Monday to revamp its social credit system, promising stronger information controls while deepening the system’s reach across China’s economy and society. Critics say the move reinforces the Communist Party’s grip under the banner of “market efficiency.”

Key Details:

  • The guideline was issued by top Chinese government and Communist Party offices, listing 23 measures to expand and standardize the social credit system.
  • It aims to integrate the credit system across all sectors of China’s economy to support what Beijing calls “high-quality development.”
  • Officials claim the new framework will respect information security and individual rights—despite growing global concerns over surveillance and state overreach.

Diving Deeper:

China is doubling down on its social credit system with a newly issued guideline meant to “improve” and expand the controversial surveillance-driven program. Released by both the Communist Party’s Central Committee and the State Council, the document outlines 23 specific measures aimed at building a unified national credit system that will touch nearly every corner of Chinese society.

Framed as a tool for “high-quality development,” the guideline declares that credit assessments will increasingly shape the rules of engagement for businesses, government agencies, and individual citizens. The system, according to the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), has already played a role in shaping China’s financial services, government efficiency, and business environment.

Critics of the social credit system have long warned that it serves as an instrument of authoritarian control—monitoring citizens’ behavior, punishing dissent, and rewarding obedience to the Communist Party. By integrating credit data across all sectors and enforcing a “shared benefits” model, the new guideline appears to entrench, not ease, the Party’s involvement in everyday life.

Still, Beijing is attempting to temper foreign and domestic concerns over privacy. The NDRC emphasized that the system is being built on the “fundamental principle” of protecting personal data. Officials pledged to avoid excessive data collection and crack down on any unlawful use of information.

Continue Reading

Trending

X