A new ISIS threat could make Americans choose not to leave their homes. ISIS released a video in which they claim that an attack against New York CIty is imminent and they even mentioned the place, Times Square, and the method, an explosive device being put together and a bomber with a suicide belt, says CNN.
The New York City Police Department reacted immediately and stated that it knew about the video and additional members of its new anti-terrorism squad are present to make things more safe.
“There’s no ISIS threat to the city,” says De Blasio
“While some of the video footage is not new, the video reaffirms the message that New York City remains a top terrorist target. While there is no current or specific threat to the city at this time, we will remain at a heightened state of vigilance and will continue to work with the FBI, the Joint Terrorism Task Force and the entire intelligence community to keep the city of New York safe.”, said the statement, according to the same source. New York’s mayor Bill de Blasio tried to calm down the population and suggested New Yorkers to not change their everyday habits.
“The people of New York City will not be intimidated. We understand it is the goal of terrorists to intimidate and disrupt our democratic society. We will not submit to their wishes.”, said de Blasio on Wednesday. Police Commissioner Bill Bratton also talked about the ISIS threat and said that the video didn’t bring anything new. “In New York, we understand we are a terrorist target. It reflects the importance of this city. Understanding that, this city places great importance on the safety of New Yorkers and the almost 60 million visitors who will come to this city.”, stated Bratton, quoted by CNN.
It’s not the first time the organization releases such statement
But according to John Miller, the NYPD deputy commissioner of intelligence and counter-terrorism, this is not the first ISIS threat this year, with a similar video being released in April. “This is an old video that was kind of rehashed. This is ISIS doing what ISIS and al Qaeda and terrorist groups do, which is propaganda. When we see the video, we make note of it, but it’s like a lot of videos we’ve seen.”, said Miller. However, it may not be cautious to ignore this type of videos.
“I think they have to treat it quite seriously, because ISIS is the richest terrorist group in history. It has an extraordinary number of Western recruits. … One of its biggest ambitions right now is to a launch a terrorist attack inside the United States.”, declared CNN terrorism analyst Paul Cruickshank.
Although FBI said there was “no specific or credible threat to the United States.”, we all saw that the ISIS threat is real when 129 people died in recent attacks in Paris, France. And New York is not the only city under extra protection. Earlier this week, another video released by ISIS threatened to strike Washington, making authorities be on a lookout for possible terrorists.
