Read on Twitter
CNN saying the explosion was a suicide bombing. They found human remains. As Bob & I have argued, to call it a suicide bomb the deliberate death of the perpetrator is a prequisite. If the bomber screwed up & didnât get out of the RV in time, thatâs not technically a suicide bomb
Basically you need more than remains to be a suicide bombing (see my book) eg a last will & testament video or some other way of taking credit for the attack. Very important that @ShimonPro understands the difference between accidental vs deliberate death of the perpetrator.
When this type of attack occurs in the Middle East, thatâs where understanding the difference between shahid vs istishad = relevant. It wouldnât be the 1st time that a bomber screwed up & accidentally blew themselves up (but it isnât a suicide bomb) recall in 2017 Alcanar Platja
Here is where @DrMichaelKenney work is relevant, thereâs a difference between learning in a training camp vs learning by doing (his work distinguished technie v metie) someone who doesnât have extensive training (learns on Internet) MORE likely to accidentally blow themselves up
So we might find out that the individual got instructions off the internet but created a faulty device. Hereâs the thing, the reason you use a suicide bomber is to adjust the time (eg not 2004 attack in Madrid). If there is a suicide bomber they can wait for the ideal time.
So this increasingly looks to me like a snafu. He called in 9/11 for a shooting, had a recorded announcement to clear the area, but stayed in the vehicle? Doesnât compute unless the guy was trying to leave the RV to wait for the first responders & he accidentally detonated device
If youâre wondering why I might jump to these conclusions? I spent years analyzing suicide attacks, interviewing terrorists, and collecting data.. I wrote the book on this subject, @ColumbiaUP http://cup.columbia.edu/book/dying-to-kill/9780231133203
Ordinarily a suicide bomber is a PBIED which means itâs on the person, if itâs in a vehicle, then it is a VBIED. In all the years I have never seen a person park the VBIED, & stay in it. either you leave the vehicle or use the vehicle to ram into the target.
Last tweet on this thread as I prep a briefing for LE: if a bomber deliberately intends to commit suicide as part of an operation, there are different ways to measure this & tell. Years ago I wrote a report with @AndrewPSilke about the preattack indicators of a suicide bombing.
