For those of us who were in Manhattan on Sept. 11, 2001, it was hard not to notice that the venue chosen for this latest act of Islamist terrorism is blocks from where the twin towers once stood.
The perpetrator, described as a Middle Eastern man, drove a rented pickup truck along a dedicated bicycle lane, mowing down cyclists and pedestrians while shouting “Allahu Akbar.”
Initial reports suggested that a shooting had taken place, but it was later clarified that the perpetrator had fake handguns in his possession, which he brandished after exiting his vehicle. Ultimately, he was taken down by a police bullet but was transferred to Bellevue Hospital, where he is expected to make a fully recovery.
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One of the targets the perp aimed at during his crazed drive was a mini-school bus that had three children aboard. The location of the attack is also home to three different schools, including the nationally acclaimed Stuyvesant High School. One of the first bystanders to photograph the man was a student at high school, who told the New York Post:
“What happened was there was a car crash. … [H]e came out of one of the cars. He had two guns. “We thought it was a Halloween thing. He started running around the highway. There was another guy in a green shirt that was chasing him around.
This is a developing story. Updates will be added as new information becomes available.
