NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — Eight people died when an assailant acting in the name of the Islamic State group drove a pickup truck along a New York City bike path Tuesday in the city’s worst terror attacks since September 11, 2001.
The following is an outline of what is known so far about the attack.
– What happened –
Shortly after 3 pm, a man identified as Sayfullo Saipov, 29 and living in America since 2010, drove a rented pickup truck along a bike path in Lower Manhattan in the hip TriBeCa neighborhood as children and their parents were preparing to celebrate Halloween.
He plowed on for about a mile, mowing down pedestrians and cyclists before hitting a school bus and coming to a halt.
Saipov then got out of the truck brandishing a pellet gun and a paint ball gun. Police shot him in the abdomen and he was taken to a hospital.
– Loyal to Islamic State –
Saipov carried out the attack “in the name of ISIS” after weeks of planning, John Miller, deputy commissioner of the New York Police Department, told a news conference, using an alternative acronym for the Islamic State group.
At the scene of the attack, police found notes in Arabic with references to IS, Miller said.
“He appears to have followed almost exactly to a ‘T’ the instructions that ISIS has put out in its social media channels before with instructions to their followers on how to carry out such an attack,” said Miller.
Saipov was associated with IS and radicalized after moving to the United States, New York governor Andrew Cuomo said, describing the man as a “lone wolf.”
– The attacker –
Saipov arrived in the United States in March 2010 and lived there legally, police said. He had never been investigated by the NYPD or the FBI, Miller said.
Saipov was an Uber driver, and was detained twice for traffic violations, accord to news reports.
He lived in Ohio and Florida before moving to Paterson, New Jersey, and was reported to be married with three children.
– Foreigners among victims –
Just like New York, a cosmopolitan city that is a magnet for tourism, the victims of the attack came from several countries.
The eight dead included a Belgian woman and five Argentines celebrating the 30th anniversary of their graduation from a prestigious polytechnical secondary school in the city of Rosario. Two Americans also died in the rampage, said NY fire chief Dan Nigro.
Nigro said 12 people were injured and as of Wednesday morning nine were still hospitalized including four in serious condition.
– Crime scene –
Formerly a bohemian district with lots of industrial buildings and cobblestone streets, these days TriBeCa is known for high-priced lofts popular with artists, and its many boutiques and cafes. The neighborhood is home to several schools including the prestigious Stuyvesant High School, which is near the scene of the attack. Its students play sports in the neighborhood, where the long, tree-lined bike path runs along the Hudson River.
– ‘You will not win’ –
After the attack, authorities put out a defiant message to the effect that it will not stop New Yorkers from going about their everyday lives.
A Halloween parade planned for Tuesday evening went ahead in the nearby West Village. And the New York City Marathon will go ahead on Sunday, with more than 50,000 runners, albeit with stepped up security.
“We are not terrorized,” said Cuomo. “You will not win.”
“But my message to all New Yorkers is, ‘do what you do best. Be New Yorkers. Be strong, be proud, be resilient. Show the whole world right now that we will not be moved by terror,'” said mayor de Blasio.
© Agence France-Presse
