NEW YORK’S DEADLIEST TERROR ATTACK SINCE 9/11
A group of friends cycling through New York to celebrate an anniversary were among those allegedly mown down by a man ‘consumed by hate and a twisted ideology’ who could end up in Guantanamo Bay. Ben Barnett reports. We have to get much tougher, much smarter, and less politically correct. US president Donald Trump wants a diversity via lottery programme to be scrapped
US PRESIDENT Donald Trump’s administration considers the truck driver who mowed down and killed eight people on a New York cycle path to be an “enemy combatant”, the White House has said.
Following what was deadliest terror attack in New York since the September 11 atrocity 16 years ago, Mr Trump’s press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the president was open to sending the attacker to the US prison at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba.
She said the actions of the attacker justify the ‘enemy combatant’ label, and while Mr Trump has not called on him to be moved to the detention camp he “certainly would support it if he felt like that was the best move”.
Tuesday’s truck attack happened near the World Trade Centre and left at least 12 people injured.
Those killed include five friends from Argentina, named as Hernan Diego Mendoza, Diego Enrique Angelini, Alejandro Damian Pagnucco, Ariel Erlij and Hernan Ferruchi, who were part of a group celebrating the 30th anniversary of their graduation from college in Rosario.
According to La Capital, a newspaper in the Argentinian city, a group of 10 friends were exploring Manhattan on bicycles when the attack took place.
The driver, who has been identified by law enforcement officials as Sayfullo Saipov, 29, from Uzbekistan, was shot in the abdomen by police after jumping out of the rented vehicle with what turned out to be two fake guns.
Following his arrest he was yesterday charged with provid- ing material support to a terrorist group and violence and destruction of motor vehicles. He was taken into a courthouse in a wheelchair, handcuffed and shackled, where prosecutors said he was “consumed by hate and a twisted ideology”.
New York governor Andrew Cuomo had described the attack as having been carried out by a “lone wolf”, but it later emerged that the FBI was seeking a second person in connection with the atrocity.
Earlier in the day, President Trump, who referred to the sus- pect as an “animal”, urged tougher immigration measures based on “merit”.
The president noted during a Cabinet meeting that the driver had entered the country through the diversity visa lottery programme and called on Congress to “immediately” begin working to eliminate the programme, which provides up to 50,000 visas annually.
Mr Trump added: “We have to get much tougher, much smarter, and less politically correct.”
Mr Schumer, a New York Democrat, criticised Mr Trump for “politicising” the deadly attack.
He said Mr Trump had proposed cutting anti-terrorism funding in his recent budget.
“I’m calling on President Trump to rescind his proposed cuts to this vital anti-terrorism funding immediately,” Mr Schumer said.