US authorities say New Orleans attacker travelled to Egypt, Canada
Al Jazeera
US Army veteran also visited the city twice in months leading up to truck attack, law enforcement officials say.
Authorities in the United States are investigating the potential significance of overseas trips made by the man responsible for driving a truck into New Year’s revellers in New Orleans, law enforcement officials have said.
Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a US Army veteran who proclaimed his support for ISIL (ISIS) in videos posted online before the attack, visited Egypt and Canada in the summer of 2023, an FBI official said on Sunday.
“Our agents are getting answers as to where he went, whom he met with, how those trips may or may not tie into his actions in our city,” Lyonel Myrthil, special agent in charge of the bureau’s New Orleans field office, told reporters.
Jabbar also made at least two trips to New Orleans, in October and November, officials said.
On his first visit, he rode a bicycle around the city’s French Quarter, where the attack was carried out, while recording the scene with Meta smart glasses, according to police.
