Recent Appearances...

Warning: Undefined array key "rbname" in /data/rantburg.com/www/pgrecentorg.php on line 14
Hello !
Recent Appearances...

Home Front: WoT

New York Subway Bomber Sentenced to Life in Prison

2021-04-23

Good. May the rest of his life be exceedingly uncomfortable.

[AnNahar] A Bangladeshi immigrant was sentenced to life in a U.S. prison Thursday for a botched attempt to unleash carnage with a kaboom in a crowded New York subway passage in the name of the Islamic State

...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems....
group.

Akayed Ullah

...the very connected lone wolf who belonged to the Al Qaeda-linked Masjid Nur al-Islam mosque in Brooklyn...

maimed himself and three other people in the December 11, 2017 blast in a tunnel below the Port Authority bus terminal near Times Square.

The bomb, which he strapped to his body with zip wires, failed to detonate as planned, and Ullah was left with burns to his torso and hands. His victims suffered minor complaints such as ringing in their ears and headaches.

The explosion sowed panic and disrupted the Monday morning commute during the busy Christmas tourism season, six weeks after a truck driver, also reportedly inspired by IS, killed eight people on a bike path.

Ullah, who migrated to the United States in 2011, was found guilty on all six counts by a Manhattan jury on November 6, 2018.

The 31-year-old's convictions include supporting a foreign terrorist organization, using a weapon of mass destruction and bombing a public place.

Judge Richard Sullivan said that although Ullah "ultimately failed" in the execution of the attack, it didn't make him "less culpable."

"Your conduct was truly heinous. This is about as bad a crime as there is," he said, handing down the life sentence.

Ullah's defense counsel had called for the mandatory minimum sentence of 35 years.

Ullah said what he had done was "wrong."
"Because I failed, Infidel"
"I can tell you from the bottom of my heart I am deeply sorry for what I did," he told the sentencing hearing.

Ullah was caught on CCTV walking through the subway terminal and detonating the bomb strapped to his body. After his arrest, he allegedly told authorities: "I did it for the Islamic State."

Ullah, a lawful permanent resident of the United States, built the bomb in his apartment, packing the device with metal screws and Christmas tree lights, having planned the attack for several weeks.

On the morning of the bombing, Ullah posted a statement on Facebook referring to the U.S. president saying: "Trump you failed to protect your nation."

A chilling handwritten note saying "O America die in your rage" was found, along with metal pipes, wires and screws in his home, prosecutors said.

Ullah began to radicalize in 2014, three years after moving to the United States, by watching IS propaganda online before starting to research how to make bombs a year ago, officials said.

Prosecutors said he opposed US government policies in the Middle East and wanted to terrorize as many people as possible, deliberately choosing a week day when the area would be most crowded.

Benar News adds:

The Dec. 11, 2017, explosion in a passageway connecting the subway station at Times Square to New York’s Port Authority bus station, occurred less than two weeks after IS released a propaganda video, "Flames of War II." In it, leaders called on supporters to carry out attacks in the United States.

One day after the bombing, Ullah’s wife, Ferdous Jui, was questioned by police in Dhaka.

She said her husband, who had been living in Brooklyn, N.Y., since 2011, visited Bangladesh in early September 2017, months after she gave birth to their son.

He made the trip to arrange U.S. immigration papers for his family, officials said.

So the family lied when they said he went home to visit a Rohingya refugee camp to conduct charity work? How unexpected. Still, he had to know by then what he planned to do. What did he think the American authorities would do to his family afterward?

According to Bangladeshi police, Ferdous Jui told them that her husband may have been influenced by sermons and writings of radical Moslem preacher Jasim Uddin Rahmani.

Her husband told her to look into what the man had to say, which was a strong hint. Mufti Muhammad Jasimuddin Rahmani has been behind bars since he was arrested in 2013. Inspired by Anwar al-Awlaki, his followers include members of Harkat-ul-Jihad-al Islami (HuJI) and Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh. He was connected to JMB by marriage...

The preacher is the imprisoned leader of a banned Bangladeshi murderous Moslem group, Ansar al-Islam, also known as Ansarullah Bangla Team.

Ansar-al-Islam is the name they took when they became the Bangladeshi branch of Al Qaeda in the India Subcontinent. They’re notorious for murdering secular Bangladeshi bloggers and writers. In 2017 an ABT man was arrested in India for recruiting for ISIS, which might explain why our miscreant insisted so strongly his dastardly deed was dedicated to ISIS rather than Al Qaeda...

The prosecutor questioned Ullah’s remorse, noting that he proudly boasted about carrying out the attack in the name of IS.

The prosecution’s sentencing memo also showed that Ullah remained radicalized and issued threats following his arrest.

"You started this war, we will finish it. More is coming, you’ll see," he told a corrections officer, according to the memo.

Link

Home Front: WoT

Terrorist found guilty in Port Authority bombing

2018-11-07

[NYPOST] The Bangladeshi immigrant who blew up a pipe bomb in a crowded pedestrian tunnel under Times Square was convicted on all counts Tuesday afternoon ‐ then blamed his failed attack on President Trump.

"I was angry with Donald Trump
...New York real estate developer, described by Dems as illiterate, racist, misogynistic, and what ever other unpleasant descriptions they can think of, elected by the rest of us as 45th President of the United States...
. He said he would bomb the Middle East," Akayed Ullah

...the very connected lone wolf who belonged to the Al Qaeda-linked Masjid Nur al-Islam mosque in Brooklyn...

said after jurors left the courtroom.

Ullah, 28, also denied trying to kill commuters for ISIS, as he confessed to an NYPD detective following the Dec. 11 blast.

"I didn’t do it for ISIS group," he said.

"They try to put me in a group which I don’t support."

Given his mosque of choice, quite possibly he did it for Al Qaeda or another jihadi group. Goodness knows there are plenty to choose from.

Manhattan federal Judge Richard Sullivan repeatedly interrupted Ullah as the Brooklyn resident blurted out his remarks.

"I don’t think right now is the time for a statement," Sullivan told him, adding that he could say his piece at his April 5 sentencing.

He faces up to life in prison.

Ullah was the only person injured when the bomb strapped to his body went kaboom! in an underground walkway connecting the city’s busiest subway station and the Port Authority Bus Terminal.

That just says he is an incompetent jihadi, not that he isn’t a jihadi.

The eight-woman, four-man jury found Ullah guilty of six felonies, including using a weapon of mass destruction and supporting a foreign terrorist organization.

The evidence against him included surveillance video that shows him falling to the floor following the kaboom.

Ullah’s defense lawyers admitted during the one-week trial that he detonated the device but claimed he did it to kill himself ‐ not others.

The conclusion does not follow from the evidence — there are much easier and more effective ways to kill oneself if that is the goal.

They also argued ‐ in an effort to avoid a potential life sentence ‐ that he wasn’t motivated by ISIS, but rather was trying to protest American policies that he felt were hurting Moslems.

And where did he get the idea that this was an effective way to accomplish that?

Link

Home Front: WoT

New York 'Islamic State'-inspired bomb plot: Not guilty plea by suspect

2018-01-12

[DW] Akayed Ullah is facing six charges for an attempted suicide kaboom near Manhattan's Time Square. He allegedly told police after his arrest he "did it for the Islamic State."

A Bangladeshi immigrant accused of trying to carry out a suicide kaboom in a busy New York City subway tunnel in December pleaded not guilty
"Wudn't me."
to terrorism charges on Thursday.

"At this moment, not guilty," Akayed Ullah

...the very connected lone wolf...

said after asked for his plea in a federal court hearing in Manhattan.

What an absurd thing to say.

The 27-year old could serve a life sentence if found guilty of charges including supporting a foreign terrorist organization, using a weapon of mass destruction and committing a terrorist attack against a mass transit system.

Attempted attack
Police tossed in the calaboose
... anything you say can and will be used against you, whether you say it or not...
Ullah on December 11 after he allegedly tried to detonate a pipe bomb attached to his body in a tunnel between Times Square and Port Authority Bus Terminal.

The bomb failed to completely detonate, but the partial kaboom left Ullah and three commuters with minor injuries.

Ullah, who arrived in the United States in 2011, allegedly told police after his arrest that he "did it for the Islamic State." Federal prosecutors said a handwritten note was also found in Ullah's passport with the words "O AMERICA, DIE IN YOUR RAGE."

Prosecutors accuse Ullah of radicalizing himself after he started watching pro-Islamic State internet videos in 2014.

At Thursday's hearing, Ullah's lawyer requested her client receive medical attention after not seeing a doctor for several days.

Judge Richard Sullivan said he may set a trial date at the next hearing on April 13.

Link

Bangladesh

Family Claims NYC Bomber Visited Bangladesh to Do Charity Work for Rohingya Muslims

2017-12-19

[Breitbart] Bangladesh’s Dhaka Tribune reported Thursday that Akayed Ullah, the jihadist responsible for a failed suicide kaboom in New York’s Port Authority Bus Terminal, visited a Rohingya refugee camp during his last trip to the country to conduct charity work.

The Tribune cites Ullah’s mother-in-law, Mahfuja Akhter, as the source for the story tying Ullah to the Rohingya camp. Ullah last visited Bangladesh in September. According to Akhter, "He stayed in Cox’s Bazar for a day and distributed first aid medicines among the displaced Rohingyas in Kutupalong." She insisted that he refused to stay in a hotel "in order to save money to purchase more medicines for the helpless people."

The Rohingya are a majority-Moslem ethnic people from Burma. Human rights NGOs monitoring the situation estimate that hundreds of thousands of Rohingya have fled the country, following the launch of a nationwide campaign to eradicate them, and traveled to Bangladesh where many suffer in refugee camps with no sign of being able to return home in the near future.

The Dhaka Tribune notes that Bangladeshi counterterrorism officers confirmed that Ullah had visited the camp in question in October, but could not definitively say that he went alone and did not provide any details as to how he decided to make the trip or if anyone invited him.

He entered the country after being sponsored for an immigrant visa by an uncle.

Link

Home Front: WoT

‘We Assume He Became Radicalized in New York’: NYC Subway Jihadist Attended Terror-Linked Mosque

2017-12-17

The question was asked the other day. Now we have the answer.

[Breitbart] The failed New York City subway bomber reportedly attended a terrorist-linked mosque in Brooklyn that was once funded by the Saudi government.

In an unsealed "confidential" report on counterterrorism issued by the NYPD’s intelligence unit, the agency designated five individuals linked to the Masjid Nur al-Islam mosque attended by the NYC terrorist Akayed Ullah as "most dangerous."

Bangladeshi law enforcement learned from Ullah’s relatives that the 27-year-old terrorist "had shown no sign of being interested in extremism before [moving] to US [sic] with his family in 2011," reports the Dhaka Tribune.

Link

Home Front: WoT

‘Akayed visited Kutupalong Rohingya camp in October

2017-12-15

[Dhaka Tribune] New York blast suspect Akayed Ullah visited a Rohingya refugee camp in Cox’s Bazar during his last visit to Bangladesh in September, his family have revealed.

Akayed’s mother-in-law, Mahfuja Akhter, told the Dhaka Tribune that the 27-year-old travelled to the Kutupalong refugee camp in Ukhiya to deliver aid to the displaced minority, though she could not recall the exact date.

"Akayed boarded a Cox’s Bazar-bound bus at night and then informed us about it through a video call," Mahfuja said during an interview at her Hazaribagh residence on Wednesday.

"He reached Cox’s Bazar in the morning and left for Dhaka on the same day. He did not even stay in a hotel during his short visit there in order to save money to purchase more medicine for the helpless people."

Officials of the Counter-Terrorism and Transnational Crimes (CTTC) unit of police confirmed Akayed’s visit to Kutupalong camp, but said they were still to ascertain if he was accompanied by anyone else.

"I cannot believe that he could be involved with militancy," said Akayed’s father-in-law, Julfikar Haider, who has been living Hazaribagh area for the past 22 years.

Julfikar said Akayed visited Bangladesh three times after marrying his daughter, Jannatul Ferdous Jui, in January 2016.

"He spent most of his time at our house during these visits (and) stayed busy with his little son throughout the day. He only went out to offer prayers five times a day at nearby Shahi Mosque," he said.

"He visited his maternal grandmother at Sandwip in Chittagong during his last visit. He also visited his uncle-in-law’s house in Uttara at that time, when we accompanied him."

Akayed’s brother-in-law, Hasan Mahmud Joy, said relatives and friends of Akayed had visited their house during the wedding ceremony, but that afterwards, "none of his friends ever visited back".

Akayed’s family members asked the Dhaka Tribune not to take any pictures or video of their family members to avoid harassment.

During the interviews his wife, Jui, stood behind curtains to veil her face. Fighting through an illness, she told the assembled media that her husband was "innocent" and sought help from the media and Bangladesh government to ensure justice in the matter.

Both Jui and her younger brother Joy told the Dhaka Tribune correspondent that Akayed had asked them to perform namaz five times a day, which is a requirement for every practising Moslem.

"When my sister had a talk with my brother-in-law on Monday morning [December 11], she did not notice any unusual behaviour," Joy said.

"We are now living in captivity. We cannot tolerate this anymore. We think Akayed might have fallen victim to a conspiracy."

The family is in shock after coming to know about Monday’s incident, when Akayed reportedly detonated a homemade bomb strapped to his body at the Port Authority Bus Terminal, injuring himself and three others.

After the blast, Akayed told police interviewers "I did it for the Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems....
According to court papers filed by federal prosecutors, he also told Sherlocks that he had been motivated by American ~~Arclight~~ airstrike

s on Islamic State targets.

The 27-year-old Bangladeshi migrant was charged at Manhattan federal court on December 11 with providing material in support to a foreign terrorist organization, bombing a public place, destruction of property by means of explosive and use of a destructive device.

On Wednesday, Inspector General of Police AKM Shahidul Hoque said Akayed had no criminal record in Bangladesh and had last visited the country on September 8.

Link

Bangladesh

Accused NY bomber’s family says attack ‘our worst nightmare’

2017-12-15

[Dhaka Tribune] Zulifikar Haider hoped his daughter would live the American dream when she married a fellow Bangladeshi living in the United States, but that dream turned into a nightmare when the family saw pictures of her husband maimed after allegedly trying to set off a bomb in a crowded New York commuter hub.

Haider’s family had been worried when his son-in-law, Akayed Ullah, 27, missed a regular call to his wife on Monday. Their worry only worsened when his wife screamed as she found online pictures of Akayed, down on the ground with apparent injuries to his stomach after the bomb ignited but failed to detonate.

"Even in our worst nightmares, we could not have foreseen this," Haider, 62, told Rooters on Wednesday evening, following two days of questioning by Bangladesh’s counterterrorism police.

"Only God knows what happened to him in America," Haider said.

US President Donald Trump
...New York real estate developer, described by Dems as illiterate, racist, misogynistic, and what ever other unpleasant descriptions they can think of, elected by the rest of us as 45th President of the United States...
reiterated his call for tougher immigration rules following Monday’s attack, which came less than two months after an Uzbek immigrant killed eight people by speeding a rental truck down a New York City bike path.

Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems....
grabbed credit for the October attack, while Akayed claimed allegiance to the murderous Moslem group, according to US federal prosecutors.

Haider said he feared Monday’s incident could lead to a backlash against Bangladeshis living in the United States.

Jui finished her bachelor of arts degree in accounting from a Dhaka college in March. When Akayed last came visiting in September after their son was born, they planned to get a passport for her to possibly join him in the United States sometime in 2018.

"He spent most of the time with his 6-month-old son when he came down," said Haider.

"He is not much of a social person. He does not really have friends, not into gossiping. He has never brought any friend to our house."

Haider’s family has not been able to talk to Akayed since the failed bombing.

Bangladesh police, meanwhile, have questioned Haider as well as his wife, daughter and his 22-year-old son. Their phone call records have been scanned.

Bangladesh’s counterterrorism chief, Monirul Islam, told Rooters they have found no links of Akayed with any murderous Moslem group in his home country. But the chief added that investigations were continuing and the family was under surveillance.

"I no longer want my daughter to go to America," Haider said. "I just want our son-in-law back."

Link

Home Front: WoT

Day 4: Port Authority bomber’s Ansarullah Bangla Team connection, appearance before judge

2017-12-14

[NYPost] Alleged Port Authority bomber Akayed Ullah was influenced by the sermons and writings of a radical Moslem preacher ‐ and tried to have his wife brainwashed by him as well, Bangladeshi officials said Wednesday.

Ullah, a 27-year-old Bangladeshi and self-described ISIS supporter, had asked his wife to read the writings and listen to the sermons of Moulana Jasimuddin Rahmani,

...who has had the attention of Bangladeshi coppers since 2007. Inspired by Anwar al-Awlaki, Muhammad Jasimuddin Rahmani‘s website was hosted on a server in Pakistan. His followers have included members of Harkat-ul-Jihad-al Islami (HuJI) and Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh...

the imprisoned leader of a banned group called Ansarullah Bangla Team,

...the Bangladeshi press, for some reason, always writes that as Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT), sometimes called simply Ansarullah. Ansar-al-Islam is the name they took when they became the Bangladeshi branch of Al Qaeda in the India Subcontinent. They are notorious for murdering secular Bangladeshi bloggers and writers, plus others who catch their malign attention. Two years ago a target list was found naming bloggers, writers, and activists living abroad, and in August an ABT man was arrested in India for recruiting for ISIS. That last would explain why our miscreant insisted so strongly his dastardly deed was dedicated to ISIS rather than Al Qaeda...

according to Monirul Islam, head of the country’s police counter-terrorism unit.

The group has been tied to killings and attacks on secular academics and atheist bloggers in Bangladesh. Rahmani is serving time in prison for his involvement in the killings.

Islam and his team interviewed Ullah’s wife, 25-year-old Jannatul Ferdous Jui, and other relatives for several hours, after picking them up at their rented apartment in central Dhaka.

Ullah’s wife was "surprised to find out what her husband did," despite speaking to him 30 minutes before the attack, Bangladeshi police told CNN.

His wife, who remained in Bangladesh when he moved Brooklyn, said he "never mentioned radicalization or planning these types of activities," police spokeswoman Sahely Ferdous told the network

"Akayed’s conversations with her were very normal," Ferdous said. "Akayed talked to his wife around 30 minutes before the kaboom, but he didn’t mention anything about the plan or what he was going to do."

A US resident since 2011, Ullah had visited Bangladesh in September to see his family, spending most of the time at home with their 6-month-old son, Islam said.

"Usually, he did not mix with any of his friends or relatives here. Most of the time he spent time in the house," Islam said. "We’re looking for his associates who he used to go to college or school with. We’re looking for them, we’ve not identified anyone yet."

US prosecutors on Tuesday brought federal charges against Ullah, accusing him of backing a foreign terrorist organization, but officials said he appeared to have no known links to local radical groups.

...though CAIR (Muslim Brotherhood in America) had no trouble finding the family afterward. But the local radical groups of Bangladesh are only a few keystrokes away.

“We have collected evidence and information from his family members: his wife, father-in-law and mother-in-law," Islam told Rooters.

Ullah’s relatives were under surveillance and would not be allowed to leave Dhaka without police permission.

"In Bangladesh we have not found any connection or have not been able to identify any of his associates who were or are involved with any terrorist groups," he added.

An American official familiar with the investigation of Monday’s attack said officers had found evidence that Ullah had watched ISIS propaganda online.

Islam said Bangladesh had passed on information on Ullah to US authorities, but there was no joint investigation.

"I’m not sure whether they will send any formal request for an investigation or inquiry," he said. "If they do, we’ll comply with the request because we’ve given highest priority on this issue because we have a zero-tolerance policy against terrorism."

Would-be suicide bomber in New York City faces court hearing

[IsraelTimes] In less than 24 hours, authorities say a would-be jacket wallah’s botched attack on a Manhattan transportation hub underneath Times Square became an open-and-shut case after a search of his apartment and hearing the suspect’s own words. Akayed Ullah, who’s expected to make his first court appearance on Wednesday, made it clear from a hospital bed where he was being treated for burns from a pipe bomb he strapped to his body that he was on a mission to punish the United States for attacking the Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems....
group, said Acting US Attorney Joon Kim. A search of the Bangladeshi immigrant’s apartment turned up bomb-making materials, including screws matching those found at the scene intended as carnage-creating shrapnel.

"His motivation," the prosecutor says, "was not a mystery."

Kim says Ullah picked the morning rush on Monday to maximize casualties in his quest "to kill, to maim and to destroy."

Ullah, 27, with a hate-filled heart and an evil purpose," carried out the attack after researching how to build a bomb a year ago and planned his mission for several weeks, Kim says.

Subway bomb suspect detained, no bail requested

[Ynet] A Bangladeshi immigrant accused of setting off a pipe bomb in the New York City subway system has appeared in court by video from a hospital room to face terrorism charges and will remain detained.

Akayed Ullah is accused of setting off an explosive strapped to his body, badly injuring himself but no one else.

Ullah appeared briefly Wednesday before a US magistrate judge via video, shown on monitors in the courtroom. Two assistant public defenders stood beside his hospital bed but did not request bail.

Ullah nodded to acknowledge he understood when the judge read him his rights. He spoke only a few words, acknowledging a financial affidavit filled out on his behalf was "true and correct."

Ullah did not enter a plea because he has not been indicted. The judge gave prosecutors until January 13 to obtain an indictment.

Link

Home Front: WoT

Day 3: 'Trump you failed to protect your nation': Failed Brooklyn terrorist warned of attack on Facebook just before he tried to blow himself up, prosecutors reveal, as he's hit with federal terrorism charges and authorities in Bangladesh grill his wife

2017-12-13

[DailyMail]

Akayed Ullah, 27, has been hit with state and federal charges in connection to Monday's bombing of the New York City subway

In court documents filed Tuesday, federal prosecutors revealed that Ullah posted on Facebook just before the attack

'Trump you failed to protect your nation,' Ullah allegedly wrote

Ullah also reportedly showed his distaste for his adopted country by writing on his Bangladesh passport 'O, America, die in your rage,' the complaint says

He told investigators that he carried out the attack for ISIS, Palestinians

The Bangladeshi immigrant faces federal charges including bombing a public place, using a weapon of mass destruction and material support for a foreign terrorist organization

He is also charged on the state level with criminal possession of a weapon, supporting an act of terrorism and making a terroristic threat

Meanwhile, Ullah's wife, who lives in Dhaka, Bangladesh, is reportedly being interviewed by authorities there

A cousin says Ullah married Jannatul Ferdous Jui, 25, in an arranged marriage two years ago and they have a six-month-old baby boy

Ullah recently visited his wife for six weeks in September and October

Ullah started watching ISIS propaganda online in 2014

He started buying ingredients for his bomb about three weeks ago, and assembled it in his Brooklyn apartment last week.

The full criminal complaint from the Joint Terrorism Task Force can be read at the link.

Link

Home Front: WoT

Port Authority Bombing Suspect Targeted Hallway Because Of Christmas Posters

2017-12-12

The alleged Port Authority bomber spent an hour spilling his guts to investigators at Bellevue Hospital on Monday ‐ saying he picked the specific hallway because of Christmas posters and that he was avenging violence against Muslims around the world, law enforcement sources said.
Sounds like someone misses home.
Akayed Ullah mentioned President Trump and past administrations during the grilling, and said his anger was fueled by decades of anti-Muslim bloodshed in Gaza, Syria and Iraq.

Ullah, a Bangladeshi immigrant, said the attack was specifically inspired by ISIS ‐ "not al Qaeda" ‐ and also mentioned seeing Christmas posters before detonating the device in the underground tunnel between the bustling bus depot and the Times Square subway.

The seasonal imagery set him off ‐ inspiring him to follow ISIS Christmas threats, NBC reports.

ISIS propaganda released just weeks ago features a picture of Santa Claus in Times Square next to explosives and the phrase "We meet at Christmas in New York . . . soon," according to terror watchdog group Site Intel.

An Islamic State militant also drove a truck into a Berlin Christmas market last year, killing 12 and injuring 56.

"He acknowledges he purposely set it off then and there," a senior law enforcement official said.

He says he acted alone, building his crudely constructed bomb from commercially available parts based on instructions he found online, sources said.

Fortunately, the homemade pipe bomb didn’t detonate properly ‐ and only wounded the wannabe suicide bomber and those around him.

Ullah was allowed to stop several times to pray during the interview, and was later taken to the intensive care unit for treatment of internal injuries suffered in the blast, sources said.

Link

Home Front: WoT

Day 2: Taxi driver 'intentionally' detonated crude bomb made of Xmas lights, sugar and match heads in NYC subway tunnel after 'seeing Christmas posters on wall' and days after 'big row with his family'

2017-12-12

[DailyMail] Follow up to the events of yesterday.

A pipe bomb prematurely went off in an underground tunnel linking the Times Square subway station and the Port Authority bus terminal Monday morning around 7:20am

The suspect has been identified as unmarried 27-year-old green-card holder Akayed Ullah

Ullah came to the U.S. seven years ago from Bangladesh on a visa for people who have family in the U.S.

He was the only one seriously injured in the blast

Ullah was taken to Bellevue Hospital for serious burns and lacerations to his hands and abdomen

CNN reports that the bomb detonated prematurely and that if it had gone off as intended the damage could have been catastrophic

Ullah says he made the explosive himself last week, after reading instructions on the internet

The FBI has been swarming multiple addresses connected to Ullah in Brooklyn

His parents have since released a statement saying they are 'outraged' by the treatment of their family

Neighbors say they heard yelling and screaming coming for the apartment the last two nights and that Ullah was not a friendly person

Ullah told investigators that he carried out the attack as revenge for recent actions by Israelis against Muslim Palestinians in the Gaza Strip

The incident happened just days after President Trump sparked demonstrations across the world by recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital city

Trump said in a statement that 'lax' immigration policies were to blame for the attack, and urged Congress to 'enact legislative reforms to protect the American people'

Link

Home Front: WoT

~~Several injured after~~ device explodes at New York City’s Port Authority, one arrest

2017-12-11

[NYPost] Several people were injured Monday morning when a device exploded at the Port Authority bus terminal on 42nd Street, according to law enforcement sources.

One person is in custody after his device partially detonated inside a tunnel, sources told The Post.

Police and firefighters have responded to the scene, where the bomb squad also has been deployed.

The NYC Office of Emergency Management said commuters should expect delays.

There was no immediate word on what prompted the response between Eighth and Ninth avenues.

This a developing story.

The NY Post story was last updated at 7:44 a.m. ET.
The Daily Mail has more, as of 8:13 a.m. ET:

An explosion was felt around 6:30am Monday morning in a Subway station near the Port Authority bus terminal in Midtown Manhattan - just a block from Times Square.

The FDNY said they located a device near the passageway between the A and 1 trains, and that it's possible this was a terror attack.

One man has been taken into custody, who was carrying a device on him.

CNN reports that it appears that the subway station was not the intended target, and that the pipe bomb the suspect was carrying went off prematurely, injuring him in the process. The suspect's identity has not been released.

And from The Telegraph:

In a statement on Twitter the New York Police Department added that three metro lines are being evacuated.

Updates at 8:35 a.m. ET:
The Telegraph:

1:29pm
Bomb found on subway platform
The bomb was reportedly found on a train platform, which suggests it was intended to be detonated in a train carriage.

1:27pm
'Isil-inspired attack' - Bill Bratton
Former NY police commissioner Bill Bratton has claimed the attack was inspired by Isil

From the Daily Mail:

The bus terminal is a major transit hub for people commuting into the city by bus from New Jersey, and is located just a block from Times Square.

CNN reports that it appears the Subway was not the intended target of the pipe bomb, and that it may have went off prematurely.

So far, the only reports of injuries are to the suspect himself. His identity has not been released.

More updates at 8:40— the British papers are dropping them in every few minutes:
Telegraph:

1:32pm
Just one person has been injured in addition to the suspected bomber, CNN reported. The bomb went off prematurely and had been intended to cause far greater damage.

Daily Mail:

Police have taken one man into custody, who had an explosive device on him. He was injured when the bomb malfunctioned, but is alive and in stable condition, according to the FDNY.

CNN learned that the device was homemade and could have caused catastrophic damage if it went off as intended.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders tweeted Monday morning that the president had been briefed on the situation.

Update at 8:45 a.m. from the NY Post:

A would-be suicide bomber set off a device at the Port Authority bus terminal subway station Monday morning, law enforcement sources said.

The suspected bomber – who had wires attached to him – was armed with a pipe bomb and a battery pack, sources said.

He was taken into custody after the device partially detonated inside the passageway to the N, Q and R trains, according to sources.

There was at least one injury and the wounded was the suspect. He was taken to Bellevue Hospital. His identity was not immediately known.

Mayor de Blasio has been briefed on the incident.

The Telegraph at 8:50 a.m.:

1:43pm
Male suspect had explosives 'strapped on' body
The male suspect had explosives strapped on when they exploded, law enforcement official told AP.

Update at 9:55 from the NY Post:

The man — a 27-year-old who lived in Brooklyn and is possibly of Bangladeshi origin — had wires attached to him and a 5-inch metal pipe bomb and battery pack strapped to his midsection as he walked through the Manhattan transit hub, sources said.

The man partially detonated the device, which he was carrying under the right side of his jacket, prematurely inside the passageway to the A, C and E trains at 8th Avenue and W. 42ndStreet at around 7:40 a.m., sources said.

Former NY police commissioner Bill Bratton, said the man had been living in the US for seven years.

The man, who suffered the most serious injuries, was taken to Bellevue Hospital.

Two others suffered minor injuries, police said.

Investigators briefly spoke to the alleged bomber, who told them he made the explosive device at the electrical company where he works.

From the Telegraph:

2:47pm
Bomber named as Akayed Ullah
Akayed Ullah is the 27-year-old suspect, New York Police said. The suspect was placed in custody and transferred to Bellvue hospital.

The individual who carried the device had burns to the hand and abdomen.

The Post and the Daily Mail have a photo of the miscreant on the ground, and fuzzy CCTV video of him blowing up.

Link

Warning: Undefined property: stdClass::$T in /data/rantburg.com/www/pgrecentorg.php on line 132
-12 More