Donald Trump slams New Orleans attack as 'act of pure evil' after car drives into New Year's crowd
1 January 2025, 16:43 | Updated: 2 January 2025, 15:41
Donald Trump has slammed the New Orleans terror attack, which saw a man drive a car into a New Year's crowd before opening fire, as an 'act of pure evil'.
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The driver, who was in a pick-up truck, was "hell-bent on carnage", officials said, as he sped through a crowd of pedestrians.
At least 10 people died and 35 more were injured in the attack, which took place near the popular Bourbon Street, in the French Quarter.
The incident happened at around 3.15am local time (9.15am UK time), with two police officers among those who were shot.
New Orleans mayor LaToya Cantrell said that the attack was "terror" in a press conference, with the FBI later confirming that they were investigating it as a terrorist incident.
Responding to the attack on Truth Social, Donald Trump said: "When I said that the criminals coming in are far worse than the criminals we have in our country, that statement was constantly refuted by Democrats and the Fake News Media, but it turned out to be true.
"The crime rate in our country is at a level that nobody has ever seen before.
"Our hearts are with all of the innocent victims and their loved ones, including the brave officers of the New Orleans Police Department.
"The Trump Administration will fully support the City of New Orleans as they investigate and recover from this act of pure evil!"
I have been continually briefed since early this morning regarding the horrific incident that occurred in New Orleans overnight.
— President Biden (@POTUS) January 1, 2025
The FBI is taking the lead in the investigation and is investigating this incident as an act of terrorism. I will continue to receive updates…
Meanwhile, President Joe Biden said he has been "continually briefed" on the incident throughout the day.
A White House statement read: "I am grateful for the brave and swift response of local law enforcement in preventing even greater death and injury.
"I have directed my team to ensure every resource is available as federal, state, and local law enforcement work assiduously to get to the bottom of what happened as quickly as possible and to ensure that there is no remaining threat of any kind.
"I will continue to receive updates throughout the day, and I will have more to say as we have further information to share.
"In the meantime, my heart goes out to the victims and their families who were simply trying to celebrate the holiday.
"There is no justification for violence of any kind, and we will not tolerate any attack on any of our nation’s communities."
