Photo:Screenshot/MSNBC
Eight people were dead and 15 more injured, in a pickup truck plowing incident late Tuesday afternoon in lower part of New York City that is being treated as a terrorist attack.
A man, said to be of Uzbek origin according to The New York Times, drove his truck onto a busy bicycle path near the World Trade Center memorial in Manhattan. The driver struck several people, then emerged from the vehicle screaming and firing an imitation gun, MSNBC-TV said, citing New York police
According to The New York Times, the driver shouted God is great in Arabic, and jumped out with a fake gun. Police shot the man.
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio called it an act of terror aimed at innocent civilians.
“It’s a very a painful day in our city – horrible tragedy on the West side. Let me be that clear based on the information we have at this moment, this was act of terror. And a particularly cowardly act of terror aimed at innocent civilians, aimed at people going about their lives who had no idea what was about to hit them,” Blasio said.
” We know that this action was intended to break our spirit but we also know New Yorkers are strong, New Yorkers are resilient. And our spirit will never be moved by an act of violence, an act meant to immediate us.”
In Washington, President Donald Trump expressed
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims of today’s terrorist attack in New York City and their families. My Administration will provide its full support to the New York City Police Department, including through a joint investigation with the Federal Bureau of Investigation,” Trump said.
“We offer our thanks to the first responders who stopped the suspect and rendered immediate aid to the victims of this cowardly attack. These brave men and women embody the true American spirit of resilience and courage. I will continue to follow developments closely,” the White House statement said.
In New York, Mayor Blasio said New Yorkers will not be deterred by the the attack.
“We have been tested before as a city very near the site of today’s tragedy. And New Yorkers did not give in in the face of these kinds of actions. We will respond as we always do. We will be undeterred. And I want to thank everyone at the NYPD, all our first responders for their extraordinary efforts in the midst of this tragedy, starting with the officer who stopped this tragedy from continuing – all the first responders who came to the aid of those who were injured,” the mayor added.
The New York Police Department posted on its Twitter feed that one person was in custody. The department said it was unclear whether anyone was shot or whether the injured were all struck by the vehicle.
This story has been updated with new information
