Half-brother of New Orleans attack suspect Shamsud-Din Jabbar says ‘this wasn’t the man I knew’
The half-brother of the New Orleans attack suspect has said his actions were not “the man I knew”.
“This wasn’t the man I knew, this wasn’t the father, the son that I knew,” said Abdur-Rahim Jabbar whose half-brother Shamsud-Din Jabbar is suspected of committing the terrorist attack on the Bourbon Street area.
A pick-up truck struck people celebrating the New Year and Shamsud-Din was killed in a shootout with police. At least 14 people were killed and more than two dozen were injured.
The suspect’s younger half-brother Abdur-Rahim told a Texas-based TV station, owned by Sky News’s partner network NBC News: “It is a tragedy.”
“We’re all grieving about this,” he said.
Abdur-Rahim said he was thinking about those impacted by the attack.
“Our hearts and prayers and thoughts go out to those families, the victims of those families and those who were there to witness it,” he said.
The suspect was a Muslim, but his half-brother said: “This isn’t any representation of Islam or Muslims or the Muslim community.”
Shamsud-Din Jabbar in Fort Johnson Louisiana. Pic: Reuters
The FBI said Shamsud-Din was a 42-year-old US citizen and army veteran from Texas. Talking about himself in a work video in 2020, Shamsud-Din said he was born and raised in the state.
An Islamic State (IS) flag, weapons, and what appeared to be an improvised explosive device (IED) were found in the vehicle, the FBI said.
The suspect posted five videos on social media before the rampage in support of IS, the agency added.
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What do we know about the suspect?
In his first clip, Shamsud-Din said he was planning to harm his own family and friends, but was concerned headlines would not focus on the “war between the believers and disbelievers”, said Christopher Raia, deputy assistant director of the FBI’s counter-terrorism division.
Shamsud-Din also joined IS “before this summer”, and provided a will, the FBI chief said.
He was twice divorced and had children. He worked as a human resource specialist and information technology specialist, Shamsud-Din said in one of his previous videos.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has been linked to a second group chat about sensitive military operations, which he reportedly shared with his wife, brother and personal lawyer.
The messages sent via the Signal messaging app are again understood to have contained details of an attack on Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis in March.
The second chat group, initially reported by The New York Times, included about a dozen people. It revealed details of the schedule of the airstrikes, according to the Reuters news agency.
Two sources with knowledge of the matter told Sky News’ US partner network NBC News there were 13 people in the second chat group, and Mr Hegseth divulged the information despite an aide warning him about using an unsecure communications system.
Mr Hegseth’s wife, Jennifer, a former Fox News producer, has attended sensitive meetings with foreign military counterparts, while his brother was hired at the Pentagon as a Department of Homeland Security liaison and senior adviser.
Military details from the first chat group were revealed by a journalist from The Atlantic magazine who was accidentally added to the Signal app by national security adviser Mike Waltz.
Mr Hegseth then shared sensitive information with cabinet officials about last month’s airstrike on targets in Yemen, which was later leaked.
Read more from Sky News:
What is Signal?
Who is Pete Hegseth?
Mike Waltz (left) and Pete Hegseth (right) have used Signal to discuss sensitive government matters. Pic: AP
‘A non-story,’ says White House
But the White House has consistently defended Mr Hegseth.
Donald Trump dismissed the original leak as “something that can happen”.
Responding to the latest chat group, White House deputy press secretary Anna Kelly said: “No matter how many times the legacy media tries to resurrect the same non-story, they can’t change the fact that no classified information was shared.
“Recently-fired ‘leakers’ are continuing to misrepresent the truth to soothe their shattered egos and undermine the President’s agenda, but the administration will continue to hold them accountable.”
The “leakers” referred to in the White House statement are four senior officials who were ousted from the Pentagon last week as part of an internal leak investigation.
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Leaked war plans: ‘Fairly serious’
‘Hegseth put lives at risk’
The New York Times reported that the second chat – named “Defence | Team Huddle” – was created on Mr Hegseth’s private phone.
It detailed the same warplane launch times as the first chat.
Several former and current officials have said sharing those operational details before a strike would have certainly been classified, and their release could have put pilots in danger.
Democratic politicians have repeatedly called for Mr Hegseth to step down.
“We keep learning how Pete Hegseth put lives at risk,” Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer said in a post on X.
“But [Donald] Trump is still too weak to fire him. Pete Hegseth must be fired.”
The latest claims about Mr Hegseth emerged as Yemen’s Houthi rebels reported another wave of US airstrikes on Sunday, including on the capital Sanaa.
The Houthis said at least 12 people had been killed, with 30 more injured.
The US says its bombing campaign is in response to Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping lanes.
DHL Express is suspending some shipments to the US as Donald Trump’s new tariff regime takes effect.
From 21 April, shipments worth more than $800 (£603) to US consumers from “any origin” will be temporarily suspended.
New rules that came into effect at the start of April made such shipments subject to increased customs checks.
“This change has caused a surge in formal customs clearances, which we are handling around the clock,” said the parcel delivery service.
Shipments going from business to business worth more than $800 aren’t affected by the suspension, but DHL warned they may also face delays.
Shipments under $800 to either businesses or consumers are not impacted, but one British cycle manufacturer suggested its US customers may need to split orders over $800 into “smaller shipments” to avoid the red tape.
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From May, shipments from China and Hong Kong that are worth less than $800 “will be subject to all applicable duties”, according to the White House.
“President Trump is targeting deceptive shipping practices by Chinese-based shippers, many of whom hide illicit substances, including synthetic opioids, in low-value packages,” it said in a statement.
Until now, deliveries worth less than $800 didn’t incur any duties, which allowed low-cost companies Chinese like Shein and Temu to make inroads in the US.
Both have warned their prices will now rise because of the rule changes, starting on 25 April.
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