Papal attack thwarted: Feds arrest teen for Islamic State-inspired plot
World
Papal attack thwarted: Feds arrest teen for Islamic State-inspired plot
The FBI quietly arrested a 15-year-old boy outside of Philadelphia last month for allegedly threatening to launch an Islamic State-inspired assault on Pope Francis while the head of the Catholic church tours the United States next week, according to reports. The boy is charged with attempting to provide material support to a terrorist organization and attempting to provide material support to terrorist activity. He planned to conduct a detailed homeland attack that included multiple suspects, firearms and explosives, targeting "a foreign dignitary at a high-profile event,” according to a joint intelligence bulletin by the FBI and Department of Homeland Security. The bulletin was issued to law enforcement agencies across the nation on Aug 14.
The minor obtained explosives instructions and further disseminated these instructions through social media.
Joint intelligence bulletin
The case is what the chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, Mike McCaul, was likely referring to on Sunday when he disclosed that U.S. authorities “have disrupted one particular case” involving threats to attack the Pope, sources said. The case, like so many others in recent months, highlights just how effective Islamic State has become in using social media to radicalize Americans, particularly children.
