Timeline, suspect and victims: Latest on the New Orleans terrorist attack

Catch up quick: A man whom the FBI identified as Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a 42-year-old U.S. Army veteran and a U.S. citizen from Texas, drove his truck around an NOPD SUV and onto a French Quarter sidewalk in the early morning hours of Jan. 1, as people were out celebrating the holiday.

• When Jabbar exited the truck, he began shooting, and three NOPD officers returned fire, officials have said. Two officers were among the injured.

Here's what we know as of Friday night.

Timeline of the attack

Jabbar rented a white Ford F150 pickup truck for the attack. Investigators have said he picked up the truck in Houston, Texas, on Dec. 30, and then arrived in Louisiana the next day. The truck was spotted in Gonzales, Louisiana, on Dec. 31.

• He used an app, Turo, for the rental, said FBI deputy assistant director Christopher Raia. What to know about Turo.
• Then, Jabbar drove to New Orleans the evening of Dec. 31, after which he posted five videos on Facebook proclaiming support for ISIS, Raia said.
• Originally, Raia said, Jabbar indicated plans to harm his friends and family, but was worried that headlines about the attack wouldn't focus on what Raia quoted as a"war between believers and disbelievers."

• Jabbar "was 100% inspired by ISIS," Raia said, noting that Jabbar said in the videos that he'd joined ISIS before last summer and provided a will and testament.

Then, Jabbar placed two improvised explosive devices along Bourbon Street, Raia said. The FBI also shared photos on X of Jabbar and a cooler containing one of the devices. See more photos.

• One was originally placed at Bourbon and St. Peter Street, but a bystander who investigators don't believe was directly involved dragged it to Bourbon and Orleans streets. Investigators found a second IED at Bourbon and Toulouse. The bombs were rendered safe at the scene, Raia said.
• The FBI said Jabbar had a transmitter in his truck, which they believe he intended to use to activate the IEDs.

Investigators believe Jabbar left the scene after placing the IEDs and returned later to follow through on his vehicle attack, using his rented truck as a weapon.

• At about 3:15am local time Wednesday, Jabbar was driving down Canal Street away from the Mississippi River when he suddenly turned right, hopping onto the sidewalk and past an NOPD SUV that had barricaded Bourbon Street has a pedestrian thoroughfare.
• Then, Jabbar continued down Bourbon Street as he plowed through people before coming to a stop and exchanging gunfire with the NOPD. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

While staying in New Orleans, Jabbar rented an Airbnb on Mandeville Street, Raia said.

• AFT agents say Jabbar set a small fire in the hallway and "strategically placed accelerants throughout the house in his effort to destroy it and other evidence of his crime," the FBI said in a statement Friday night.
• The fire burned out before spreading to other rooms, the FBI said, and agents found pre-cursors for bomb-making material and a privately made device suspected of being a silencer for a rifle.
• The FBI has cleared the Airbnb and Bourbon Street crime scenes and released them to New Orleans authorities.

Zoom in: Evidence that remains under investigation includes Jabbar's rented truck, two laptops and three cellphones.

• The FBI has also received nearly 1,000 tips as of Friday night and leads have been sent to field offices across the country, officials said.
• The FBI has also brought in 200 additional employees to help with the investigation.

Suspect acted alone

Investigators' early assumptions were that Jabbar did not act alone, but Raia clarified Thursday that they are no longer working under that assumption.

• "We do not assess at this point that anyone else is involved in this attack except Jabbar," Raia said.

Zoom out: The FBI has already searched and cleared a scene in Houston, where the suspect lived, investigators said.

• Investigators also continue to look for possible connections between the New Orleans attack and a deadly Tesla Cybertruck explosion outside Trump International Hotel Las Vegas.
• "At this point, there is no definitive link" between them, Raia said.

New Orleans remains "safe"

Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry said New Orleans "right now is the safest place on earth."

• It was an attempt to allay fears that further violence could unravel in the city even as Notre Dame and University of Georgia fans gathered for the rescheduled Allstate Sugar Bowl.
• The game, originally slated for New Year's Day, was played at 3pm CST Thursday at the Caesars Superdome, about a mile away from where the Wednesday attack took place.

It's not yet clear exactly why Jabbar chose New Orleans to carry out his attack, officials said, but the likelihood of a large crowd was a draw.

• "This type of event can happen in any city, and that's the tragedy of it," Landry said. "To protect our citizens in America from evil, you have to crush it. You can't go out there and placate it. You can't go out there and ... hope evil doesn't show up on your doorstep, because it will."

Yes, but: "We do not believe the public is in any danger around any of these locations," Raia said.

• Landry and Mayor LaToya Cantrell stated their confidence in what Landry called the city's current "unprecedented" level of law enforcement presence.
• "Right now, this is one of the safest places on earth," Landry said. "That doesn't mean nothing can't happen."

The intrigue: The statements were at odds with Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill's comments early Thursday during an appearance on Fox & Friends.

• "I would probably at least have postponed [the Allstate Sugar Bowl] until Friday," she said. "But, you know, I think that they have secured the city and, you know, it's OK, I guess, if they're going forward with it."

Bourbon Street reopened to the public by about 12:30pm Thursday.

• City leaders laid 14 yellow roses in honor of the victims who died before reopening the street. Other street memorials have grown too.
• Additionally, new vehicle-resistant barricades were installed on Bourbon Street sidewalks.

How to help

If you have tips: The FBI is asking to connect with anyone with tips, or video or photos of the scene, and anyone who may have ever spoken with Jabbar.

• They can be sent to law enforcement by calling the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI or visiting www.fbi.gov/bourbonstreetattack.

How to give: Blood donations are needed, and they're making a big difference after hundreds of donors have already answered the call, officials say. But more may be needed. Go deeper.

• Find a Blood Center location.
• The GNO Foundation started a fund to help victims and their families.

Editor's note: This story was updated Sunday with additional details from the FBI.

Carlie Kollath Wells contributed to this story.