Planned Terrorist Attack at Taylor Swift Concert Was Intended to Kill…see more

Planned Terrorist Attack at Taylor Swift Concert Was Intended to Kill “Tens of Thousands of People,” CIA Official Says

“They were plotting to kill a huge number, tens of thousands of people at this concert, I am sure many Americans,” Cohen said, as reported by The New York Times. “The Austrians were able to make those arrests because the agency and our partners in the intelligence community provided them information about what this ISIS-connected group was planning to do.”

On Aug. 7, Austrian concert promoter Barracuda Music announced that the three Eras Tour shows scheduled at the Ernst Happel Stadium would be canceled over an apparent terrorist plot. Austrian authorities have since arrested three people accused of plotting the attack, including one who was found with bomb-making material.

Cohen emphasized they had no doubt that the goal of the plot was to attack the Eras Tour show, killing a large number of concertgoers.

Weeks following the cancellation of the shows, Swift broke her silence on the planned attacks, as well as expressed gratitude to the authorities. “Having our Vienna shows cancelled was devastating,” she wrote on Instagram. “The reason for the cancellations filled me with a new sense of fear, and a tremendous amount of guilt because so many people had planned on coming to those shows.”

The superstar continued, “But I was also so grateful to the authorities because thanks to them, we were grieving concerts and not lives. I was heartened by the love and unity I saw in the fans who banded together.”

Cohen did not share how the CIA learned of the planned attack. The Times reported that 200,000 people were expected to attend Swift’s Vienna shows.

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The plot to attack Taylor Swift’s Vienna shows was intended to kill thousands, a CIA official says

BERLIN (AP) — The suspects in the foiled plot to attack Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna earlier this month sought to kill “tens of thousands” of fans before the CIA discovered intelligence that disrupted the planning and led to arrests, the agency’s deputy director said.

The CIA notified Austrian authorities of the scheme, which allegedly included links to the Islamic State group. The intelligence and subsequent arrests ultimately led to the cancellation of three sold-out Eras Tour shows, devastating fans who had traveled across the globe to see Swift in concert.

CIA Deputy Director David Cohen addressed the failed plot during the annual Intelligence and National Security Summit, held this week in Maryland.

“They were plotting to kill a huge number — tens of thousands of people at this concert, including I am sure many Americans — and were quite advanced in this,” Cohen said Wednesday. “The Austrians were able to make those arrests because the agency and our partners in the intelligence community provided them information about what this ISIS-connected group was planning to do.”

Austrian officials said the main suspect, a 19-year-old Austrian man, was inspired by the Islamic State group. He allegedly planned to attack outside the stadium, where upwards of 30,000 fans were expected to gather, with knives or homemade explosives. Another 65,000 fans were likely to be inside the venue. Investigators discovered chemical substances and technical devices during a raid of the suspect’s home.

Austria’s interior minister, Gerhard Karner, previously said help from other intelligence agencies was needed because Austrian investigators, unlike some foreign services, can’t legally monitor text messages.