Taylor Swift concert terror plot aimed to kill ‘thousands of people’: CIA official
The CIA’s deputy director has confirmed that the planned terrorist plot at Taylor Swift’s show in Vienna earlier this month aimed to kill a “large number” of people – including Americans.
David S. Cohen revealed at the Intelligence and National Security Summit, as seen in a video on CSPAN, that information used by Austrian authorities to stop the terrorist plot was given to the CIA.
“They were plotting to kill a large number of people, tens of thousands, at this concert, including, I’m sure, many Americans,” Cohen said. “The Austrians were able to make these arrests because our partners in the agency and the intelligence community provided them with information about what this ISIS-linked group was planning to do.”
Swift’s rep did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
In early August, Swift cancelled her three Austrian shows, scheduled at Vienna’s Ernst Happel Stadium, after learning of a planned bombing there.
On August 7, authorities arrested a 17-year-old man and a 19-year-old man for allegedly plotting a terrorist attack on Swift’s Vienna show. The show was scheduled to take place at the Ernst Happel Stadium on August 8–10. An 18-year-old man was arrested on August 8.
Police have questioned a 15-year-old boy but he has not been named as a suspect.
Swift called the cancellations “devastating” in a social media post a few days after her show in Vienna was scheduled to take place.
“Walking on stage in London was a rollercoaster of emotions,” Swift wrote in a post on social media. “Having our Vienna shows canceled was devastating. The reason for the cancellations filled me with a new sense of fear and a lot of guilt because so many people had planned to come to those shows. But I was also very grateful to the authorities because thanks to them, we were grieving for the concerts and not for the lives they lost.”
She added, “I was so moved by the love and unity I saw in the fans who came together. I decided that all of my energy should be focused on protecting the nearly half a million people who came to see me in London. My team and I worked closely with stadium staff and the British authorities every day to achieve that goal, and I want to thank them for everything they have done for us. I want to be clear: I will never speak publicly about something that I think might embolden people who want to do harm to my fans who come to see me.”
Swift has remained mum about canceling the show, but according to her post, she felt it was necessary to do so to protect herself and her fans.
“In cases like this, ‘silence’ is actually showing restraint, and waiting to express yourself when it’s right. My priority was to complete our European tour safely, and it is with great relief that I can say we did that,” the “Cruel Summer” singer wrote.
Concert organisers in Austria said they expected up to 65,000 fans for each concert inside the stadium and 30,000 outside, where authorities said the suspects planned to attack.
At least one suspect confessed that he wanted to “murder as many people as possible outside the concert venue.”
Bomb-making materials were also found in the home of at least one of the teens. According to NBC, the 19-year-old was found with a bomb-making manual as well as homemade explosives, detonators and hydrogen peroxide.
Authorities found ISIS and al-Qaeda material at the 17-year-old’s home.
Due to Austrian privacy laws, the names of the suspects have not been released to the public.
