The night of October 31, or Halloween, turned out to be one of true horror for the people of Manhattan, after a truck went on a deadly rampage killing eight people and injuring about a dozen others in what authorities said was an act of terrorism. Here’s what we know so far about the attack:
1. A man in a rented pickup truck mowed down pedestrians and cyclists along a busy bike path in New York city’s lower Manhattan neighborhood on Tuesday evening, killing eight people and wounding at least 12 others.
2. The 29-year-old suspect was shot by police in the abdomen and arrested after he crashed the truck into a school bus and fled his vehicle. He underwent surgery and is said to be in critical condition, but authorities say he’s expected to survive.
3. Multiple media outlets reported that the suspect shouted “Allahu Akbar” – Arabic for “God is greatest” – when he jumped out of his truck brandishing two fake guns in his hands.
4. Investigators have reportedly found a note left by the suspect in the truck, claiming he carried out the attack in the name of the Islamic State terror group.
5. An official briefed on the incident told the Associated Pres that the suspect is Sayfullo Saipov, an Uzbekistan-born immigrant who came to the US in 2010. He added that Saipov rented the truck in his name an hour before the attack.
6. President Donald Trump called the deadly truck rampage “another attack by a very sick and deranged person” and ordered the Department of Homeland Security “to step up our already Extreme Vetting Program” of travelers coming to the US.
7. New York city Mayor Bill de Blasio dubbed it a “cowardly act of terror aimed at innocent civilians”, while New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said it a “lone wolf” attack and that there was no evidence to suggest it was part of a wider plot.
8. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) joined the New York City Police Department and other agencies in a Joint Terrorism Task Force to conduct a probe of the attack.
9. Tuesday’s assault took place on the far west side of lower Manhattan, just a few blocks from the site of the World Trade Center, where suicide hijackers crashed airplanes into the Twin Towers on September 11, 2001, killing more than 2,600 people.
10. Despite the attack, thousands of costumed Halloween revelers turned out hours later for New York City’s main Halloween parade, which went on as scheduled Tuesday night, only a few blocks from the scene of the carnage, with a heightened police presence.