On Wednesday (1st January) morning, a terrorist identified as Shamsud Din Jabbar deliberately ran his pickup truck over a crowd, killing at least 15 people and injuring 30 others.
The incident occurred in the French Quarter neighbourhood in New Orleans city of the United States. Jabbar was 42 years old and a US Army veteran.
Jabbar was neutralised by the police in a gunfight. The Ford pickup truck, used by him to orchestrate the terror attack, was equipped with an ISIS flag.
Video shows the moment the FBI says Shamsud Din Jabbar raced onto a packed Bourbon Street from Canal Street in a pickup truck with Texas plates and an ISIS flag. https://t.co/P0iWiTX30Z pic.twitter.com/hmeB1tUjpc
— FOX 8 New Orleans (@FOX8NOLA) January 1, 2025
According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Shamsud Din Jabbar did not act alone. The authorities have recovered a handgun, AR-style rifle guns and multiple Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) including pipe bombs from his vehicle.
They have also seized similar explosives from other parts of the neighbourhood. Reportedly, three men and a woman were spotted in surveillance footage planting those IEDs.
Shamsud Din Jabbar was wearing a ballistic vest and helmet when he stepped out of his pickup truck and fired at the law enforcement authorities.
FBI says ISIS flag was on truck used in New Orleans crowd-ram attack pic.twitter.com/1VbdCzbZXE
— The National (@TheNationalNews) January 1, 2025
While speaking about the incident, New Orleans Police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick stated, “This is not just an act of terrorism. This is evil.”
The FBI also found videos uploaded by Jabbar on social media, wherein he expressed his allegiance to ISIS and desire to kill people. Although the said videos were uploaded several hours before the attack, no action was taken to stop him.
According to journalist Andy Ngo, Shamsud-Din Jabbar worked as an information technology specialist at one point in time. He used to sell firearms online from Houston city in Texas.
Shamsud-Din Jabbar, the New Orleans terror suspect, was selling firearms online. He listed his location as being in Houston, Texas.
— Andy Ngo 🏳️🌈 (@MrAndyNgo) January 1, 2025
Authorities say he used a firearm in the truck ramming attack that killed at least 10 people. He was shot dead by responding police in a shootout. pic.twitter.com/vNWlRvHaEV
The ISIS terrorist joined the US army in 2007. He served in Human Resources and IT Department and was deployed to Afghanistan between 2009-2010. He left the US Army with the rank of staff sergeant in 2020.
Here is a photo of Shamsud-Din Jabbar of when he served in the Army.
— Defiant L’s (@DefiantLs) January 2, 2025
He served for more than a decade and deployed to Afghanistan before he carried out his ISIS-inspired attack.
According to sources, police found videos Jabbar made where he referenced the Quran. He also… pic.twitter.com/xaHKCnuEai
According to reports, Shamsud Din Jabbar was arrested for theft in 2002. He was re-arrested in 2005 for driving with an invalid licence. Both those offences were classified as ‘misdemeanours’ and he was fined only $100.
It had only come to light that he was married twice. His second wife had even filed a motion for a restraining order against him.
In the aftermath of the terror attack, a college football game that was scheduled to be played at the nearby Superdome was postponed till Thursday (2nd January).