Islamic Group ‘Threat’ Against India-Pakistan Match In New York Prompts US Authorities To Heighten Security

India-Pakistan T20 Match: A purported online threat post directed against the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 match between India and Pakistan in New York has prompted US authorities to heighten security measures. The post, said to be from the Islamic Group (IS) terror outfit, first surfaced on a British chat site.
India-Pakistan Match: New York Authorities Heighten Security
Acknowledging the terror threat, New York Governor Kathy Hochul said she has “directed the New York State Police to engage in elevated security measures, including an increased law enforcement presence, advanced surveillance, and thorough screening processes”.
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Meanwhile, Bruce Blakeman, the head of Nassau County, where the venue of the scheduled fixture, Eisenhower Stadium, is located, said, “We make sure that we are on top of every situation that could potentially arise. Now to that end, we have taken many many precautions.” He added, “We take every threat seriously. There are the same procedures for every threat. We don’t minimise threats. We track down all of our leads.”
T20 World Cup 2024: What The ‘Threat’ Post Says?
The post in question reportedly depicted drones flying over the match venue with the date of the India-Pakistan league stage fixture, 09/06/2024, inscribed on the image. A screenshot of the post was broadcast on a news report by NBC New York TV.
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The channel reported that Nassau county authorities “say they’ve made the request to the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) to make Eisenhower Park a no-fly zone for drones”. New York officials downplayed the ISIS post as not a “credible threat”, while at the same time asserting that they were monitoring the situation.
India-Pak T20 Match: Venue Can Accomodate 30,000 Spectators
The stadium, which has a 30,000-capacity, was built specially for the tournament and will share the matches in the US with the arena in Dallas. British newspaper Express was the first to report on the threat, which it said was also directed against sporting events in Europe. It said that ISIS “followers are encouraged to target major events” including the T20 World Cup.
(With inputs from IANS)