2013 Boston Marathon bombings

2013 Boston Marathon bombings
Aaron Tang · CC BY 2.0 · source
Title	2013 Boston Marathon bombings
Location	Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Date	April 15, 2013
Time	2:49 p.m. EDT
Type	Terrorist attack, pressure cooker bombs
Fatalities	5 (including 2 perpetrators)
Injuries	281
Perpetrators	Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and Tamerlan Tsarnaev
Motive	Islamic extremism

2013 Boston Marathon bombings were a domestic terrorist attack that occurred during the annual Boston Marathon on Patriots' Day. Two homemade explosive devices detonated near the finish line on Boylston Street, killing three civilians and injuring hundreds more. The subsequent manhunt, which involved the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Boston Police Department, paralyzed the Greater Boston area for days and resulted in the death of a MIT police officer and one of the perpetrators.

Background

The Boston Marathon is one of the world's oldest annual marathons, first run in 1897 and traditionally held on the Patriots' Day holiday. By 2013, it had grown into a major international sporting event attracting over 23,000 participants and half a million spectators. Security planning for the event was a coordinated effort involving the Boston Athletic Association, local law enforcement, and federal agencies like the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The Tsarnaev brothers, the eventual perpetrators, had been living in the United States for over a decade, with the elder brother, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, having traveled to Russia and the Republic of Dagestan in 2012, a trip that later drew significant scrutiny from the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.

Bombings

At approximately 2:49 p.m. EDT on April 15, two explosions occurred about 12 seconds and 210 yards apart near the marathon finish line on Boylston Street. The devices were improvised explosive devices (IEDs) constructed from pressure cookers, filled with shrapnel, and hidden in backpacks. The first bomb detonated in front of 671 Boylston Street near the Lenox Hotel, and the second exploded moments later in front of 755 Boylston Street outside the Forum Restaurant. The blasts created immediate chaos, with emergency personnel from the Boston Police Department, Boston Fire Department, and Boston Emergency Medical Services rushing to the scene to treat the wounded amid the debris.

Aftermath

The immediate aftermath saw a massive emergency response, with the area declared a crime scene by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Massachusetts General Hospital, Brigham and Women's Hospital, and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center received most of the critically injured, many suffering traumatic amputations and severe shrapnel wounds. On April 18, the Federal Bureau of Investigation released images of two suspects, leading to a series of events that included the murder of Sean Collier, an officer with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Police Department, and a dramatic confrontation in Watertown, Massachusetts, involving the Boston Police Department and the Watertown Police Department.

Investigation

The investigation, code-named Operation Vigilant Eagle, was led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Boston Field Office and quickly identified the suspects as brothers Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and Tamerlan Tsarnaev. Critical evidence came from surveillance footage, including from a Lord & Taylor store, and from a carjacking victim who escaped captivity. The manhunt culminated in a lockdown of the Greater Boston area and a standoff in Watertown, Massachusetts, where Tamerlan Tsarnaev was killed in a firefight. Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was captured the following day, April 19, hiding in a boat in a backyard.

Perpetrators

The attacks were carried out by brothers Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and Tamerlan Tsarnaev, ethnic Chechens who had been living in the United States as legal permanent residents. Investigators determined they were motivated by Islamic extremism and learned to build bombs from online propaganda, including instructions from *Inspire* magazine, a publication linked to al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. Their mother, Zubeidat Tsarnaeva, and their father, Anzor Tsarnaev, lived abroad. Tamerlan Tsarnaev had previously been interviewed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in 2011 at the request of the Russian Federation.

Victims

Three people were killed at the scene: 29-year-old Krystle Campbell, 23-year-old Lu Lingzi, and 8-year-old Martin Richard. A fourth fatality, 27-year-old Sean Collier, a police officer with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Police Department, was shot and killed by the perpetrators on April 18. Over 280 others were injured, with at least 16 suffering traumatic limb amputations. Many survivors, such as Jeff Bauman and Rebekah Gregory, became public figures during their recoveries and were honored at events like the World Series and the Super Bowl.

Memorials and tributes

Numerous tributes emerged in the wake of the attack. The city of Boston held an interfaith service attended by President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama. The Boston Red Sox honored victims and first responders at Fenway Park, with player David Ortiz delivering a memorable speech. The phrase "Boston Strong" became a widespread rallying cry. Permanent memorials include the Boston Marathon Memorial on Boylston Street and the Sean A. Collier Memorial at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The annual marathon now features a special tribute at the starting line in Hopkinton and a moment of silence at the finish.

Category:2013 in Massachusetts Category:April 2013 events in the United States Category:Terrorist incidents in the United States in 2013