2010 Times Square car bombing attempt

2010 Times Square car bombing attempt
The dark blue Nissan Pathfinder SUV (right) in Times Square, Manhattan, 27 minutes after the attempted attack.
The vehicle's rear hazard lights are on.
Location1 Astor Plaza/1515 Broadway, New York City (Times Square, Manhattan) 10036, United States
Coordinates40°45′29″N 73°59′09″W / 40.758056°N 73.985768°W / 40.758056; -73.985768
DateSaturday, May 1, 2010
6:28 p.m. EDT (UTC−04:00)
Attack type
Deaths0
Injured0
PerpetratorsTehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan
MotiveSee below
ConvictedFaisal Shahzad

On May 1, 2010, a terrorist attack was attempted in Times Square in Manhattan, New York, United States. Two street vendors alerted NYPD after they spotted smoke coming from a vehicle, and a car bomb was discovered.[1][2] The bomb had been ignited, but failed to explode, and was disarmed before it caused any casualties.[1][3][4] Two days later, federal agents arrested Faisal Shahzad, a 30-year-old Pakistan-born resident of Bridgeport, Connecticut, who had become a U.S. citizen in April 2009.[5] He was arrested after he had boarded Emirates Flight 202 to Dubai at John F. Kennedy International Airport.[5][6][7][8] He admitted attempting the car bombing and said that he had trained at a Pakistani terrorist training camp, according to U.S. officials.[9]

United States Attorney General Eric Holder said that Shahzad's intent had been "to kill Americans."[5] Shahzad was charged in federal court in Manhattan on May 4 with attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction and other federal crimes related to explosives.[5] More than a dozen people were arrested by Pakistani officials in connection with the plot. Holder said the Pakistani Taliban directed the attack and may have financed it.[10]

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned of "severe consequences" if an attack like this were to be successful and traced back to Pakistan.[11] The Obama administration saw a need for retaliatory options, including a unilateral military strike in Pakistan, if a future successful attack was to be traced to Pakistan-based militants.[12]

On October 5, 2010, Shahzad was sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty to a 10-count indictment in June, including charges of conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction and attempting an act of terrorism.[13]

  1. ^ a b "Suspicious car leads to closure of Times Square". CNN. May 2, 2010. Archived from the original on May 2, 2010. Retrieved May 2, 2010.
  2. ^ "Car bomb found in New York's Times Square". BBC News. May 2, 2010. Archived from the original on May 3, 2010. Retrieved May 2, 2010.
  3. ^ Baker, Al; Rashbaum, William K. (May 1, 2010). "Police Find Car Bomb in Times Square". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on May 8, 2010. Retrieved May 14, 2010.
  4. ^ "Crude car bomb found in Times Square". MSNBC. Archived from the original on May 3, 2010. Retrieved May 2, 2010.
  5. ^ a b c d Mazzetti, Mark; Tavernise, Sabrina; Healy, Jack (May 4, 2010). "Suspect, Charged, Said to Admit to Role in Plot". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on May 7, 2010. Retrieved May 7, 2010.
  6. ^ Shane, Scott (May 5, 2010). "Government Tightens No-Fly Rules". The New York Times. Archived from the original on May 13, 2010. Retrieved July 1, 2010.
  7. ^ "Times Square suspect had explosives training, documents say". CNN. May 4, 2010. Archived from the original on May 4, 2010. Retrieved May 4, 2010.
  8. ^ "Was The Times Square Bombing Coverage Wholly Accurate?". May 7, 2010. Archived from the original on May 14, 2010. Retrieved May 14, 2010.
  9. ^ Sullivan, Eileen; Dozier, Kimberly (May 4, 2010). "AP sources: Bomber trained at Pakistan terror camp". Boston.com. Retrieved October 6, 2022.
  10. ^ Berger, Joseph (May 2, 2010). "Pakistani Taliban Behind Times Sq. Plot, Holder Says". The New York Times. Archived from the original on May 11, 2010. Retrieved May 9, 2010.
  11. ^ "Clinton warns Pakistan of terror 'consequences". BBC. May 8, 2010. Archived from the original on May 10, 2010. Retrieved May 8, 2010.
  12. ^ Miller, Greg (May 29, 2010). "Options studied for a possible Pakistan strike". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on June 5, 2010. Retrieved June 1, 2010.
  13. ^ Bray, Chad (October 5, 2010). "Times Square Bomber Gets Life Sentence". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on December 1, 2017. Retrieved October 5, 2010.