By: Jacob Hales

December 11th, 2017, an explosion rocked Port Authority, one of the biggest transit hubs in the country. A pipe bomb strapped to Akayed Ullah, a 27 year old Bangladeshi immigrant, was detonated in an underground passageway between Port Authority and Times Square station. Three people were injured, no one was killed.

Although he is substantially burned on his hands and abdomen, Ullah is alive and in the custody of the NYPD.

Just like the previous two terror attacks in NYC, they seem to be carried out by a “lone-wolf” or by someone who isn’t tied to a major terrorist group: something that seems to be a reoccurring trait of modern terrorism.

Ullah used a pipe bomb made of a 9v battery, broken christmas tree lights, and matches. He strapped the bomb to his stomach using zip ties and wore a hooded sweatshirt to cover it.

At approximately 7:20 AM, New Yorkers, as usual, go about their morning and commute to work at the Port Authority bus terminal. Among these commuters, a man in a hoodie. An ear-piercing blast erupts in the passageway. Smoke fills the corridor as the commuters run for the exit. Ullah is held down and detained by NYPD officers. Luckily his bomb didn’t detonate to its fullest extent.

Ullah’s family is now facing backlash and ridicule for Akayed’s strange and seemingly unprovoked actions. According to neighbors: he was a quiet man who tended to stay to himself. Investigators say that he has only a few traffic tickets on his record.

So what could have provoked him?

Ullah states that he committed this act “in the name of ISIS” after seeing a series of holiday posters in the area that was later the sight of the bombing. However, he also says that he committed this act in retaliation to the recent U.S. airstrikes in Syria. Investigators are still trying to confirm if this act of terrorism is secular or tied to a major terrorist organization.

Let’s just be thankful that no one was killed.