At least temporarily on Wednesday, the FBI was clearly concerned that the ISIS-inspired/-directed attack in New Orleans may have been the work of a broader cell of terrorists. Early on Wednesday morning, a U.S. citizen, Shamsud-Din Jabbar, drove a truck at high speed into New Year’s Eve revelers celebrating on New Orleans’s famous Bourbon Street. At least 15 people were killed. Vehicle ramming attacks are an ISIS hallmark.
Later came media reports that the FBI believed three or four individuals other than Jabbar were caught on security cameras laying explosive devices. These reports may have been mistaken.
Still, one key indication that the FBI had at least some credible intelligence to indicate a sustaining threat was the deployment of the FBI’s Hostage Rescue Team to New Orleans. As I noted earlier, a Department of Justice Boeing 757-200 aircraft flew from Richmond,…
