Laith Alkhouri

Intel Adviser | Founder @intelonyx | CIO @MVPTaskForce | CT Analyst @MSNBC | Pre: Cofounder @FlashpointIntel | #Intelligence #Terrorism RT=Interesting

[Laith Alkhouri @MENAanalyst]

I can assure you I’m not notable in anything, but I have taken on some bad guys throughout the years. Some people might find that interesting.

[Laith Alkhouri @MENAanalyst]

@elonmusk Unlike the U.S., most countries don’t have 750 military bases and installations in 80+ countries.

[Laith Alkhouri @MENAanalyst]

Did I hear it correctly that Marco Rubio is cutting funding to Jordan 🇯🇴 - a longstanding key regional ally?

[Laith Alkhouri @MENAanalyst]

“Truly, whoever can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities.”

260 years later, so apropos.

[Laith Alkhouri @MENAanalyst]

Here’s what’s in season:

Apples
Clementines
Grapefruit
Kiwis
Kumquats
Lemons
Oranges
Pears
Persimmons
Tangerines
Allium bulbs (onions, shallots, garlic)
Avocados
Beets
Bok choy
Broccoli
Brussels sprouts
Cabbage
Carrots
Cauliflower
Celery root
Chayote
Collards
Fennel
Kale
Leeks
Mustard greens
Sweet potatoes
Swiss chard
Turnip greens
Winter squash

[Laith Alkhouri @MENAanalyst]

For some people, blue lives matter except on January 06, 2021.

[Laith Alkhouri @MENAanalyst]

That Pete Hegseth couldn’t name one #ASEAN country should tell you everything about how much (read: little) he knows about the world. This is the man who is about to be the defense secretary of the world’s most powerful nation.

[Laith Alkhouri @MENAanalyst]

The FBI and DHS are warning about the threat of possible copycat attacks after the ISIS inspired #NewOrleansTerrorAttack.

Individuals might use vehicles in ramming attacks because they’re easy to acquire, they are cost effective, they inflict a lot of damage and simply they can kill a lot of people.

#seesomethingsaysomething

[Laith Alkhouri @MENAanalyst]

As analysts keep track of terrorists’ advancement in exploiting technology and cyberspace (e.g. launching cyber attacks or disrupting the grid), the large majority of them strike using accessible means - knives, guns, vehicles. The biggest issue is that security professionals must succeed every time while physical threat actors need to succeed once. Soft targets remain the most desirable ones amongst them - and instilling fear and discord is a way of achieving their political end. They want to convince the public that their government cannot protect them.

[Mike Baker @ByMikeBaker]

NEW tonight: In videos posted to Facebook, Shamsud-Din Jabbar pledged allegiance to ISIS before his New Orleans attack.

[Laith Alkhouri @MENAanalyst]

From conducting some OSINT, it appears that Jabbar had a Yahoo email account, Facebook, Linkedin, X, Trello, and Flickr accounts. Other inactive online accounts also exist. It seems that he had used three preferred usernames.

It also appears that he had kicked off his career as a Data Entry Clerk at USPS in 2002 before joining the US military as Data Entry Clerk at US Army Corps of Engineers (2005-2006).

[Laith Alkhouri @MENAanalyst]

As, I’m sure, other analysts have mentioned already, #ISIS (and Al-Qaeda) encouraged ramming attacks multiple times in the past. In 2017, ISIS released Rumiyah Magazine with a section titled Just Terror Tactics: Truck Attacks, in which it indicated that a large truck, owned or rented, would be ideal to use in targeting “large outdoor festivals” and “congested streets.”

The #NewOrleansTerrorAttack appears to take a page out of the ISIS and Al-Qaeda playbooks - only enhanced but adding weapons and possible IEDs. Whether this attack is orchestrated or, likely, inspired, it underscores that such attacks are not an anecdote of the past.

This attack further showcases some (but not high) sophistication and a considerable degree of planning. While it has not been determined whether the attacker had outside help, acquiring weapons, renting a vehicle, potentially building IEDs - put altogether - suggests that it is possible he had some help as well as considerably possible that reconnaissance was conducted around the site of the attack.

[Laith Alkhouri @MENAanalyst]

FBI confirms ISIS flag was on vehicle in New Orleans truck attack https://t.co/hs6xGFCin7

[Laith Alkhouri @MENAanalyst]

If the New Orleans attack ends up being an ISIS inspired one, it would be the deadliest ISIS inspired attack in the US since the 2016 Omar Sateen attack at the Orlando nightclub.

If memory serves, the last ISIS inspired ramming attack in the US - carried out by Sayfullo Saipov - was in NYC in 2017, killing several people.

The 2020 Corpus Christi attack by Adam Alsahi could have turned into a terrible ramming attack if the naval station barriers didn’t prevent him from carrying on.

[Evan Kohlmann @IntelTweet]

The latest terror attack in New Orleans is a painful reminder that ISIS is capable of recruiting native-born American citizens--and simply fortifying borders or curbing illegal immigration won't stop these attacks from occurring. (1/x)

[Laith Alkhouri @MENAanalyst]

FBI Update on Bourbon Street Terrorist Attack — FBI https://t.co/ieZQuIE5oW

[Laith Alkhouri @MENAanalyst]

New York: At least 11 shot at in night club in Queens, New York https://t.co/0MV1ZqooKU

[PBS News @NewsHour]

.@lbarronlopez asks @juliettekayyem about the next steps she's looking for in the New Orleans truck attack investigation.

[Laith Alkhouri @MENAanalyst]

FBI confirms ISIS flag was on vehicle in New Orleans truck attack https://t.co/hs6xGFCin7