A Truly Frightening Halloween

Halloween is known for being a scary holiday. But what happened this Halloween was truly frightening. New York City, on Tuesday, was a target for a terrorist attack, presumably inspired by Isis. For many, Halloween is no longer a holiday to celebrate, but one to dread. Senior Lauren Banks said, “Hearing about this event, especially when it’s so close to home, is not only upsetting, but nerve racking as well.”

According to CNN, “Eight people -- six foreign tourists and two Americans -- were killed Tuesday [October 31st] in the deadliest terror attack that New Yorkers have seen since 9/11.” A man drove a pickup truck through a crowd of people, hitting pedestrians and cyclists, along with harming many others. The attacker, is said to be an Islamic State “soldier,” and was inspired to carry out the attack after watching Isis terrorism videos. The suspect, Sayfullo Habibullaevic Saipov, stated that he closely examined the terrorist group's plans, and ways of execution, and recreated it. He possessed videos and images of the terrorist group’s propaganda. Although Isis hasn’t stated that they are solely responsible for the attack, they do state that the attacker is one of their “soldiers.”

The president, Donald Trump, has released a statement saying that he wishes to send the attacker to the Guantanamo Bay detention site, where he is to be given the death penalty. Unfortunately, due to Trump’s announcement relating to the fate of the attacker, the court may be unable to sentence the terrorist to death row.

According to USA Today, “The problem with those and other comments, say both defense lawyers and former prosecutors, is that they all but convict Saipov before a trial. And coming from the nation's commander in chief, they can be seen as attempting to influence the judiciary.” We will just have to wait and see how the court rules.

However, after the attack, New York City continued to celebrate the holiday, through the Halloween Parade in Greenwich Village. The continuation of the parade was an effort to show that New Yorkers don’t back down, and are relentless. Senior Gianna Masi stated, “It is such a saddening event, and it is even more heartbreaking knowing many who died were so young.”