A mosque near the home of the man who police say carried out the deadly New Year's Day attack in New Orleans has asked its congregation to not respond to media inquiries.
Early Wednesday morning, Shamsud-Din Jabbar, 42, drove a pickup truck into a crowd on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, killing at least 14 people and injuring dozens of others before being shot to death by police, according to authorities.
The Houston-based Masjid Bilal condemned the "terrible acts" in an Instagram post and added, "If anyone is contacted by the media, it is very important that you do not respond. If approached by the FBI and a response is necessary, please refer to CAIR and ISGH," referring to the Council on American-Islamic Relations and the Islamic Society of Greater Houston.
The post was captured and put on X by Daily Wire reporter Bree A Dail. It has not been verified that Jabbar attended the Masjid Bilal.
"We stand in solidarity with the people of New Orleans in the wake of this senseless and horrific crime. Anyone with any potentially relevant information should come forward immediately, and our attorneys stand ready to help arrange and facilitate communication with relevant law enforcement agencies," a spokesman for the Council on American-Islamic Relations said in a statement to Newsweek.
James Morley III ✉
James Morley III is a writer with more than two decades of experience in entertainment, travel, technology, and science and nature.
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