- Early indications are that the explosion at 23rd Street and 6th Avenue in Manhattan that injured 29 was “an intentional act.”
- The New York Police Department released a photo of Ahmad Khan Rahami (28) who was caught in New Jersey.
- The incident took place hours before the world leaders arrived for the UN General Assembly session.
- The first explosion was allegedly caused by a device placed in a trash can on 23rd Street.
- Another device reported to be a pressure cooker with wires attached to a cell phone was discovered on 27th Street nearby.
- President Barack Obama, attending a congressional dinner in Washington, has been apprised of the explosion.
US Searching for Afghanistan-born American
The New York Police Department released a photo of 28-year-old Ahmad Khan Rahami of Elizabeth, New Jersey, to question him about a Saturday night explosion that injured 29 people in Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood and for a blast earlier that day in Seaside Park, New Jersey, authorities said.
Rahami was taken into custody after firing at a police officer in Linden, New Jersey, about 20 miles outside New York, Elizabeth Mayor Chris Bollwage said.
The New York City police had pulled over a car on a city bridge, although the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) did not make any immediate arrests, agency spokeswoman Kelly Langmesser had said on Sunday.
However, US authorities were searching on Monday for an Afghanistan-born American in connection with a New York City bombing that left dozens injured and could be linked to pipe bombs found in New Jersey.
Investigators believe more people were involved in the New York and New Jersey bombing plots, two US officials told Reuters. New York Mayor Bill de Blasio told CNN that Rahami might be armed and dangerous.
Hillary Clinton Condemns the Attack
Hillary Clinton on Sunday condemned the the attack that left nine people wounded. She also said that it seemed to be a case of terrorist attacks.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo on Sunday said that there was still no indication that the explosion that took place in Manhattan on Saturday night was linked to international terrorism.
“But it is very, very early in the investigation,” Cuomo told reporters near the scene some 14 hours after the blast.
President Obama Has Been Apprised of Explosion in New York City
President Barack Obama, attending a congressional dinner in Washington, “has been apprised of the explosion in New York City, the cause of which remains under investigation,” a White House official said.
Explosion Being Investigated as a Criminal Act
An explosion rocked the bustling Chelsea neighbourhood of Manhattan on Saturday night, injuring at least 29 people, and authorities said they were investigating the blast as a criminal act not immediately linked to any terror organisation.
The incident took place hours before the world leaders arrived in the city for the UN General Assembly session.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and other city officials said investigators had ruled out a natural gas leak as the origin of the blast, but they stopped short of calling it a bombing and declined to specify precisely what they believed may have triggered the explosion.
Pressure Cooker Device Found Near Site of Explosion
Police said a sweep of the neighbourhood following the blast turned up a possible “secondary device” a short distance away.
CNN, citing law enforcement sources, reported that it appeared to be a pressure cooker with wires attached to it and connected to what resembled a cell phone. A piece of paper with writing on it was found nearby, according to CNN’s account.
The blast occurred on 23rd Street, a major east-west thoroughfare in the fashionable downtown neighborhood of Chelsea.
Explosion in Chelsea
“An Intentional Act”
Remaining circumspect about the exact nature of the actual explosion, De Blasio said early indications were that it was “an intentional act.” He added that the site of the blast, outside on a major thoroughfare in the fashionable New York City district, was being treated as a crime scene.
“There is no evidence at this point of a terror connection,” the mayor said at a news conference about three hours after the blast. He added, “There is no specific and credible threat against New York City at this point in time from any terror organisation.”
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