In one of the videos the New Orleans attacker had recorded, Shamsud-Din Jabbar claimed that he had previously “planned to harm his family and friends”, but was concerned that the media coverage would not focus on the “war between the believers and the disbelievers”, news agency Reuters reported, citing FBI deputy assistant director Christopher Raia who briefed the media about investigation.
Matthias Hauswirthv prays near the site where a vehicle drove into a crowd on New Orleans’ Canal and Bourbon streets, Wednesday, (AP)
Matthias Hauswirthv prays near the site where a vehicle drove into a crowd on New Orleans’ Canal and Bourbon streets, Wednesday, (AP)

Jabbar also mentioned in the videos that he had joined the Islamic State terrorist group or ISIS before last summer and shared his last will and testament, Raia said.

Shamsud-Din Jabbar, 42, who drove a pickup truck into a crowd on Bourbon Street, killing 15 people and injuring many others, posted five videos on Facebook in the hours leading up to the attack, Raia said during a news briefing on Thursday.

The Texas-born US citizen and an Army veteran, who served in Afghanistan, referred in the videos to his divorce and how he initially planned to gather his family for a “celebration” with the “intention of killing them,” CNN reported citing two officials who briefed on the recordings.

CNN quoted Raia as saying that the videos, which Hindustan Times could not independently verify, were posted on Jabbar’s Facebook page between 1:29am and 3:02am on Wednesday.
Who was Shamsud-Din Jabbar?

Shamsud-Din Jabbar was a former US Army member. Like many of his victims in the New Year’s Day attack, he was shot in a firefight with police after opening fire, which resulted in two officers being wounded.

Jabbar served in the US Army from March 2007 to January 2015, and then in the Army Reserve from January 2015 to July 2020. He deployed to Afghanistan from February 2009 to January 2010 and ended his service as a staff sergeant.

Abdur-Rahim Jabbar, the younger brother of Jabbar, told The Associated Press on Thursday that it “doesn’t feel real” that his brother could have committed such an act.

“I never would have thought it’d be him,” he said. “It’s completely unlike him.” He mentioned that his brother had been isolated in recent years, but added that they had been in contact recently and he hadn’t noticed any signs of radicalisation.

The FBI recovered a black Islamic State flag from his rented pickup.

The ISIS, a militant Muslim group known for its violent rule over Iraq and Syria, has continued to recruit sympathizers online even after its territorial collapse due to a U.S.-led military campaign.

Before the attack, Jabbar planted two improvised explosive devices. The attack occurred around 3:15 a.m. local time when Jabbar rammed his truck into a crowd, exchanging gunfire with police before being killed. Authorities confirmed he had an ISIS flag in his vehicle.

Eyewitnesses reported seeing Jabbar, dressed in full body armour, exiting the truck he had crashed into revellers. He is believed to have had an assault rifle with him.

A US government official, on the condition of anonymity, informed the Associated Press that Jabbar visited Egypt in 2023, staying in Cairo for a week before returning to the US and then heading to Toronto for three days. The activities he engaged in during these trips remain unclear.