Boston bombers 'motivated by radical Islam but unconnected to Muslim terrorists groups'
US officials say it appears Dzhokhar and Tamerlan Tsarnaev acted alone when they allegedly planted the Boston Marathon bombs
Acted alone? Officials believe the Tsarnaev brothers are unconnected to Muslim terrorist groups
The Boston bombers appear to have been motivated by a radical brand of Islam but do not seem to be connected to any Muslim terrorist groups, US officials have said.Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, 19, was charged with using a weapon of mass destruction as he lay handcuffed to his hospital bed yesterday.The teenager is in a serious but stable condition in the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Centre where he is unable to speak after apparently shooting himself in the throat.It is thought the teenager placed a gun in his mouth and pulled the trigger in a desperate bid to avoid capture and a possible death penalty.His older brother and fellow suspect Tamerlan, 26, was killed during a fierce gunfight with police in the Watertown area on Friday.Dzhokhar is communicating with his interrogators, answering questions in writing with pen and paper, as officials try to establish a motive.The Massachusetts university student and his brother are suspected of setting off the shrapnel-packed pressure-cooker bombs which killed three people and injured more than 180 last week.The brothers, ethnic Chechens from Russia who had been living in the US for more than a decade, practised Islam.Two US officials said preliminary evidence from Dzhokhar’s interrogation suggests the brothers were motivated by religious extremism but were apparently not involved with Islamic terrorist organisations.
Accused: Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is charged with using a weapon of mass destruction
Investigators said the Tsarnaev brothers each placed a backpack containing a bomb in the crowd near the finish line of the world's most prestigious marathon.The FBI said surveillance camera footage showed Dzhokhar manipulating his mobile phone, lifting it to his ear just moments before the two blasts.After the first blast, a block away from Dzhokhar, "virtually every head turns to the east... and stares in that direction in apparent bewilderment and alarm", the complaint says.Dzhokhar Tsarnaev "virtually alone of the individuals in front of the restaurant, appears calm".He then quickly walked away, leaving a backpack on the ground. About 10 seconds later, a bomb blew up at the spot where he had been standing, the FBI said.The FBI did not say whether he was using his mobile phone to detonate one or both of the bombs or whether he was talking to someone.The criminal complaint shed no light on the motive for the attack.The Obama administration said it had no choice but to prosecute Dzhokhar Tsarnaev in the federal court system.Some politicians had suggested he be tried as an enemy combatant in front of a military tribunal, where defendants are denied some of the usual constitutional protections.But Dzhokhar is a naturalised US citizen, and under US law, American citizens cannot be tried by military tribunals, White House spokesman Jay Carney said.
US officials say it appears Dzhokhar and Tamerlan Tsarnaev acted alone when they allegedly planted the Boston Marathon bombs
Acted alone? Officials believe the Tsarnaev brothers are unconnected to Muslim terrorist groups
The Boston bombers appear to have been motivated by a radical brand of Islam but do not seem to be connected to any Muslim terrorist groups, US officials have said.Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, 19, was charged with using a weapon of mass destruction as he lay handcuffed to his hospital bed yesterday.The teenager is in a serious but stable condition in the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Centre where he is unable to speak after apparently shooting himself in the throat.It is thought the teenager placed a gun in his mouth and pulled the trigger in a desperate bid to avoid capture and a possible death penalty.His older brother and fellow suspect Tamerlan, 26, was killed during a fierce gunfight with police in the Watertown area on Friday.Dzhokhar is communicating with his interrogators, answering questions in writing with pen and paper, as officials try to establish a motive.The Massachusetts university student and his brother are suspected of setting off the shrapnel-packed pressure-cooker bombs which killed three people and injured more than 180 last week.The brothers, ethnic Chechens from Russia who had been living in the US for more than a decade, practised Islam.Two US officials said preliminary evidence from Dzhokhar’s interrogation suggests the brothers were motivated by religious extremism but were apparently not involved with Islamic terrorist organisations.
Accused: Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is charged with using a weapon of mass destruction
Investigators said the Tsarnaev brothers each placed a backpack containing a bomb in the crowd near the finish line of the world's most prestigious marathon.The FBI said surveillance camera footage showed Dzhokhar manipulating his mobile phone, lifting it to his ear just moments before the two blasts.After the first blast, a block away from Dzhokhar, "virtually every head turns to the east... and stares in that direction in apparent bewilderment and alarm", the complaint says.Dzhokhar Tsarnaev "virtually alone of the individuals in front of the restaurant, appears calm".He then quickly walked away, leaving a backpack on the ground. About 10 seconds later, a bomb blew up at the spot where he had been standing, the FBI said.The FBI did not say whether he was using his mobile phone to detonate one or both of the bombs or whether he was talking to someone.The criminal complaint shed no light on the motive for the attack.The Obama administration said it had no choice but to prosecute Dzhokhar Tsarnaev in the federal court system.Some politicians had suggested he be tried as an enemy combatant in front of a military tribunal, where defendants are denied some of the usual constitutional protections.But Dzhokhar is a naturalised US citizen, and under US law, American citizens cannot be tried by military tribunals, White House spokesman Jay Carney said.