Before New Orleans attack, ISIS-inspired driver in video said ‘he planned to kill own family’

A Tesla Cybertruck exploded in flames outside the Trump International Hotel Las Vegas on Thursday, killing the driver and injuring seven others.

The incident occurred just hours after a man drove a truck into crowds of New Year's Day revelers in New Orleans, killing 15. The FBI--which is leading the New Orleans attack investigation--has identified the attacker as Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a 42-year-old US citizen from Texas.

Jabbar had posted videos indicating that he was inspired by ISIS before he ploughed New Year's eve revellers in a popular area.

Officials told CNN that the suspect, obscured by darkness in the video, also spoke about his divorce and plans to gather his family for a “celebration" with the intent of killing them. He later changed his plans and said that he joined ISIS, CNN reported.

“Mere hours before the attack, he posted videos on social media indicating that inspired by ISIS, expressing a desire to kill,” Joe Biden said in an address to the nation from the presidential retreat of Camp David in the state of Maryland where he is spending the rest of the week.

Four years ago, in a promotional video, Jabbar described himself as born and reared in Beaumont, a city about 80 miles (130 km) east of Houston. He said he spent 10 years in the US military as a human resources and IT specialist.

According to the Pentagon he served more than 10 years in the military as a human resource specialist and an IT specialist and was deployed to Afghanistan from 2009 to 2010.

An ISIS flag was found in the vehicle, the FBI said, adding, it was working to determine the subject's potential associations and affiliations with terrorist organisations.

Investigations are on into possible links between this attack and the explosion of a Tesla cyber-truck outside a Trump organisation property in Las Vegas, which left several people injured.

Elon Musk, Tesla owner and a staunch Trump ally, indicated in a post on X, previously called Twitter, there was a link. “Appears likely to be an act of terrorism. Both this Cybertruck and the F-150 suicide bomb in New Orleans were rented from Turo (Turo). Perhaps they are linked in some way.” He was referring to Turo, an app that allows car owners to rent out their vehicles much in the same way as AirBnb does for homeowners.

“I directed my team to make sure every resource, every resource, is made available to federal, state and local law enforcement to complete the investigation in New Orleans quickly, and to make sure there is no remaining threat to the American people,” Biden said in his address.

With inputs from agencies