President Obama vows to find those behind Boston Marathon bombing (NYDailyNews)
President Obama quickly pledged “every single federal resource necessary” to Boston in the wake of the bombings at the marathon, while underscoring that as of early Monday evening he did not know “who did this or why.” “But make no mistake,” he said in the White House briefing room, “we will find out who did this, why they did this. Any responsible group will feel the full weight of justice.” …Addressing the nation at 6:10 p.m., Obama did not use the word “terrorism,” though the Federal Bureau of Investigation technically deems any explosion involving an explosive device as “terrorism” and asserts jurisdiction. He spoke as a section of Pennsylvania Avenue near the White House was closed off in the wake of the bombings.
Boston Marathon bombing proves evil never leaves us in peace (LATimes)
The terrorist bombing at the Boston Marathon is yet another cause for despair. It places the hometown of Paul Revere, Sam Adams and the Sons of Liberty in company with Mumbai, Karachi and Baghdad, as well as Oklahoma City. Hour after hour Monday, the same heart-wrenching images cycled through the nonstop television coverage: moms, dads, kids, amateur athletes shooting for a personal best, all suddenly engulfed in horror. As I write, the death toll is set at three; the number of reported injuries has climbed to 134. Those numbers will probably be revised upward. One moment, happy people celebrating Boston’s Patriots’ Day holiday stood cheering for friends and family at the marathon finish line; the next they were on the ground, bleeding, stunned, grievously wounded, pulverized by shrapnel, many legs blown off by the bomb blast. They were random victims of some person or group of people who did not have an ounce of empathy for them.
Boston Marathon Bomber Loose as Authorities Race for Clues (ABCNews)
Hundreds of U.S. law enforcement agents are racing to gather and analyze every shred of evidence from Monday’s deadly Boston Marathon bombing for a hint of the attacker, but the morning after three were killed and nearly 150 more injured in twin explosions, no one has been taken into custody. Overnight a tip about possible explosives led federal agents to search an apartment on the fifth floor of a building in the Boston suburb of Revere. Agents later told residents there was nothing to worry about, but the quick and overwhelming law enforcement response underscored the urgency of the FBI’s effort to track and stop the people responsible. “This cowardly act will not be taken in stride,” Boston Police Commissioner Ed Davis said. “We will turn [over] every rock to find the people responsible for this.”
Elderly competitor becomes enduring image of bombing (NineMSN)
Retired builder Bill Iffrig, 78, is seen in shocking footage being knocked to the ground by the force of the first explosion just metres from the finish line. But the triple-Boston Marathon veteran was helped back to his feet by a race official before he turned around and finished the race. “I got down to within 15 feet of the finishing apron and just tremendous explosion, sounded like a bomb went off right next to me,” Mr Iffrig told CNN. “The shock waves just hit my whole body and my legs just started jittering around.
UN chief calls Boston Marathon bombing ‘senseless violence’ (ZeeNews)
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Monday condemned the bombing at the Boston Marathon, calling it “senseless violence.” Speaking at a ceremony at UN Headquarters commemorating the 19th anniversary of the Rwanda genocide, Ban said the bombing “is all the more appalling for taking place at an event renowned for bringing people together from around the world in a spirit of sportsmanship and harmony.” He said that although reports on the incident were still coming in, it was already known that there are dead and wounded. “For now I just wanted to say that my thoughts are with everyone in Boston,” Ban said, expressing his deepest condolences to the families of the victims and wishing those wounded a speedy recovery.
City mourns bomb victims (BostonHerald)
Boston is in mourning today for three killed and at least 144 wounded in a “cowardly” bombing at the Boston Marathon, leaving the tragedy-wracked city scrambling for answers as to how a terrorist was able to plant two explosive ?devices on a busy stretch of Boylston Street at a high-security international event. “This cowardly act will not be taken in stride,” Boston Police Commissioner Edward F. Davis said. “We will turn over every rock to find those responsible.” The 2:50 p.m. double bombing shattered the bliss of the sun-splashed marathon, sending frantic runners and fans scrambling for cover and sending at least 144 to the hospital. There were at least three dead — including an 8-year-old — and 30 wounded “critically,” officials said last night.
Musicians Respond to Boston Marathon Bombing (Rollingstone)
Tragedy struck Massachusetts today, as simultaneous explosions disrupted the 177th running of the Boston Marathon. Of the 27,000 athletes participating in this year’s contest, at least two were reported dead and 73 more injured as of 7:00 PM on Monday, April 15. President Obama addressed the nation shortly after 6:30 PM, asking his fellow countrymen to “say a prayer for Boston” and adding “Michelle and I send our deepest thoughts and prayers to the families of the victims in the wake of this senseless loss.”
Marathon bombings could impact outdoor events (USAToday)
For the city, today’s tragic explosions at the Boston Marathon finish line could not have occurred at a worse time or place. Owing to the rich history and prominence of the annual race, there is no other time of the year when the city is more crowded with locals and visitors alike. Runners and spectators from across the country and around the world converge on the city every year for the celebrated Patriots Day race. And the explosions erupted at the race’s end when hundreds of runners were completing their 26-mile feat to the cheers of well-wishers. Whether the explosion was the work of an organized terrorist group or the action of amateurs seeking to create chaos and confusion, this calamity differs significantly from such crimes as the Oklahoma City bombing and the 9/11 attack. Earlier terrorist strikes were perpetrated when least expected — a routine day for all those caught by surprise.
Boston marathon blasts: Investigators get active leads (ZeeNews)
Investigators probing the twin Boston bombings that left three people dead have a number of active leads and have made “some good early progress in the forensics analysis”, a law enforcement official said. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is taking the lead in investigating the double bombing that left at least 144 injured at the Boston Marathon finish line. A range of different agencies are involved in the hunt to find out who carried out the terrorist attack Monday afternoon in one of the oldest cities in the US and an international centre of higher education and medicine. Harvard University, the nation’s oldest, is located across the Charles river in Cambridge. Its business and medical schools are in Boston, the capital city of Massachusetts State.
Boston attack ‘easily’ one-man operation: Bomb experts (TimesOfIndia)
The bombing at the Boston Marathon that claimed at least three lives and injured over 140 others is likely a one-man operation and it was virtually impossible to prevent such attacks in a free country, US security experts warned on Tuesday. They said the bombs could easily have been hidden in a backpack, avoiding all suspicion among the thousands of spectators who flooded the Back Bay yesterday. Retired FBI bomb technician Kevin G Miles said the attack could “easily” have been the work of one person. “A one-man operation could easily do something like this,” Miles was quoted as saying by the Boston Herald.
In our ballparks, fear will strike out (ESPN)
So much remains unknown about the person or people responsible for the explosions at the Boston Marathon, a mystery President Obama has promised to solve. But this much is already clear about the attack on the innocents trying to enjoy a race defined by the unbreakable human spirit: If the murderer or murderers hoped to scare away sports fans from arenas and stadiums and future marathon sites, the places where people go to celebrate the teams and events representing who those people are, he or she or they will lose. And lose decisively.
New York and London race to review security (BostonHerald)
The deadly bombing of the Boston Marathon cast a dark shadow over the running world Monday, highlighting the vulnerability of massive races like the New York City Marathon. “Marathons bring out the best of the human spirit and unite our cities and towns,” said Mary Wittenberg, chief of the New York City Marathon, in a statement supporting the Boston race organizers. “This is a tragic day for all of us in the running community.” The next major marathon on the world calendar is the London Marathon on Sunday. The Metropolitan Police told the BBC that a security plan was in place for the event but that the police would be reviewing the Boston event.
Jordanian extremist ‘happy’ over Boston Marathon bombing (CTVNews)
The head of an extremist Jordanian Muslim Salafi group said early Tuesday that he was “happy to see the horror in America” after the explosions in Boston. “American blood isn’t more precious than Muslim blood,” said Mohammad al-Chalabi, who was convicted in an al-Qaida-linked plot to attack U.S. and other Western diplomatic missions in Jordan in 2003. “Let the Americans feel the pain we endured by their armies occupying Iraq and Afghanistan and killing our people there,” he said early Tuesday. Al-Chalabi served seven years in prison for his part in the foiled attack. His group is outlawed in Jordan.
Boston cops, feds descend on Revere building (BostonHerald)
A phalanx of officers from the FBI, ATF and Boston swarmed a fifth-floor apartment in Revere’s Ocean Shores Tower last night in what residents said was a startling show of force just hours after the horrific Boston Marathon double bombing. “There were all kinds of police … cops were all over the fifth floor. ATF, FBI all milling around,” said Jim Sudmeier, a resident of the complex. Sudmeier, a professor at Tufts University Medical School, said the focus was on one particular unit on that floor. In addition to two Boston Police K-9 units and a bomb squad unit, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, as well as Homeland Security investigators and state police also assembled at the two buildings on Ocean Avenue in Revere.
