FBI probes Boston bombings as “terror.” Three killed, 140 injured. White House, New York on terror alert
The FBI is investigating the two explosions at the elite Boston Marathon Monday, April 15, as a “potential” act of terror. The casualty toll rose to three dead and 140 runners and spectators injured – 11 of them in critical condition, some having lost limbs. The two blasts were seconds apart, apparently in or near the Fairmont Copley Plaza Hotel at the finishing line, three hours after the winners passed. President Barack Obama said: “We don’t know what happened, but we will get to the bottom of who and why… and the perpetrators will be held accountable and feel the full weight of justice.”
He did not mention the word “terror” but Boston, Washington DC and New York were placed on instant terror alert.
The Boston police advised people to stay home after closing the city's airspace and also the mobile phone service to prevent the detonation of explosives. Air links between Boston and New York were suspended. The Secret Service closed the pedestrian walkway in front of the White House in Washington and the Pentagon was placed on heightened terror alert. New York counterterrorism police were deployed at Manhattan landmarks and strategic areas in the city.
After the twin explosions, the Boston authorities found two more explosive devices at the Boston Marathon and dismantled them.
Ball bearings found strewn at the scene of the blasts and in the pockets of victims were seen as consistent with terrorist methods and the same signature that was found in similar attacks in Israel and other places.
An injured Saudi national was questioned under guard in hospital.
The Boston Marathon with thousands of runners from many countries is one the most prestigious events of its kind in the world.
The head of an extremist Jordanian Muslim Salafi group said he's "happy to see the horror in America" after the explosions in Boston.
"American blood isn't more precious than Muslim blood," said Mohammad al-Chalabi, who was convicted in an al-Qaida-linked plot to attack U.S. and other Western diplomatic missions in Jordan in 2003.
"Let the Americans feel the pain we endured by their armies occupying Iraq and Afghanistan and killing our people there," he said early Tuesday.
A Mideast counterterrorism official based in Jordan said the blasts "carry the hallmark of an organized terrorist group, like al-Qaeda." He did not give actual evidence.
New York counterterrorism police are deployed at Manhattan landmarks and strategic areas in the city.
After the twin explosions, the Boston authorities conducted a controlled explosion of a suspicious package. Two more explosive devices were found at the Boston Marathon and dismantled.
No information has been released about the cause of the explosions but they are being treated by the US authorities as a major, multiple terrorist event.
The Boston Marathon with thousands of runners from many countries is one the most prestigious events of its kind in the world.
