Terrorist attack at Taylor Swift concert reportedly aimed at killing ‘tens of thousands’
The CIA’s deputy director has confirmed that the terrorist plot planned at Taylor Swift’s Vienna concerts earlier this month was aimed at killing “massive numbers” of people – including Americans.
David S. Cohen revealed at the National Security Intelligence Summit, as seen in a video on CSPAN, that the information used by Austrian authorities to prevent the terrorist plot was passed to the CIA.
“They were planning to kill a huge number of people, tens of thousands of people at this concert, and certainly a lot of Americans,” Cohen said. “The Austrians were able to make these arrests because the agency and our intelligence partners provided them with information about what this ISIS-linked group was planning to do.”
Swift’s representative did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
The planned terrorist attack on Taylor Swift’s Vienna concert is aimed at “killing large numbers” of people, the CIA’s deputy director said Wednesday. (Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images)
In early August, Swift cancelled three of her concerts in Austria at Vienna’s Ernst Happel Stadium after reports of a planned bomb attack.
TAYLOR SWIFT TERROR PLOT: HOMETOWN NEIGHBORS OF PRIME SUSPECT DESCRIBE CHANGES IN HIS BEHAVIOR
On August 7, the authorities arrested A 17-year-old boy and a 19-year-old boy have been arrested for allegedly planning terrorist attacks at Swift’s concerts in Vienna, scheduled for August 8-10 at the Ernst Happel Stadium. An 18-year-old man was arrested on August 8.
“They were planning to kill a huge number of people, tens of thousands of people at that concert, and I’m sure a lot of Americans.”
A 15-year-old male was questioned by police but has not been named as a suspect.
Swift had called the cancellations “devastating” in a social media post days after her Vienna shows were scheduled to take place.
Taylor Swift has cancelled her three concerts in Vienna after learning of the planned terrorist attack. (Kate Green/Getty Images)
“Getting on stage in London was a rollercoaster of emotions,” Swift wrote in a social media post. “The cancellation of our concerts in Vienna was a shock. The reason for the cancellation made me feel a new sense of fear and an immense sense of guilt, because so many people had planned to come to these concerts. But I was also very grateful to the authorities, because thanks to them we were mourning concerts and not lives.”
She continued: “I was heartened by the love and unity I saw from the fans who came together. I decided that all my energy had to be devoted to helping protect the nearly half a million people who came to see the concerts in London. My team and I worked hand in hand with the stadium staff and the British authorities every day to achieve this goal, and I want to thank them for everything they did for us. I want to be very clear: I will not speak out about something in public if I think it might provoke those who would want to harm the fans who come to my concerts.”
Taylor Swift has said that having to cancel her Vienna concerts has filled her with a “new sense of fear.” (Thomas Niedermueller/TAS24/Getty Images)
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Swift had remained silent on the cancellations, but according to her post, she felt it was necessary to protect herself and her fans.
“In cases like this, ‘silence’ is really about holding back and waiting to speak out at the appropriate time. My priority was to complete our European tour safely, and it is with great relief that I can say that we have done so,” the “Cruel Summer” singer wrote.
Organizers of the concert in Austria said they expected up to 65,000 fans to be inside the stadium at each concert and up to 30,000 spectators outside, where authorities said the suspects planned to strike.
Three men have been identified as suspects in the planned terrorist attack in Vienna during Swift’s concerts. (TAS2024/Getty Images)
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At least one of the suspects confessed to wanting to “kill as many people as possible outside the concert hall.”
Bomb-making materials were also found in at least one of the teens’ homes. The 19-year-old man had bomb-making manuals in his possession as well as homemade explosives, detonators and hydrogen peroxide, according to NBC.
Authorities discovered documents belonging to ISIS and al-Qaeda at the 17-year-old’s home.
The CIA’s deputy director has announced that he believes “many Americans” may have been killed at Taylor Swift’s Vienna concerts. (Thomas Niedermueller/TAS24/Getty Images for TAS Rights Management)
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Due to Austrian privacy laws, the names of the suspects have not been released to the public.
Fox News Digital’s Elizabeth Stanton contributed to this report.
