A driver wrought carnage on New Orleans’ famed French Quarter early on New Year’s Day, killing 10 people as he rammed a pickup truck into a crowd before being shot to death by police, authorities said.
More than 30 people were injured as Wednesday’s attack turned festive Bourbon Street into macabre mayhem. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is investigating it as an act of terrorism and said an Islamic State group flag was found in the vehicle.
The FBI identified the driver as Shamsud-Din Jabbar, 42, a US citizen from Texas.
Investigators were working to determine Jabbar’s potential associations and affiliations with terrorist organisations, the FBI said.
Jabbar was killed in a firefight with police following the attack around 3.15am in an area teeming with New Year’s revellers, the FBI said.
A photo circulated among law enforcement officials showed a bearded Jabbar wearing camouflage next to the truck after he was killed by police.