Paterson: Attempted Times Square bomb attack was an “act of terrorism”

Capital Tonight has Paterson’s statement in light of the attempted bomb attack late last night in NYC:

Tonight, we owe an incredible debt of gratitude to the heroic actions of the New York City Police Department and to a single vigilant New Yorker who identified a suspicious vehicle near Times Square in New York City.”

“Luckily, no one is hurt, and now the full attention of city, State and federal law enforcement will be turned to bringing the guilty party to justice in this act of terrorism.”

The Pakistani Taliban is claiming responsibility, but NYC Police Commissioner Ray Kelly says there’s no evidence yet to suggest such a link. As for possible suspects, the NYPD has video of a white male “shedding clothing in an alley and putting it in a bag and found a substance that resembled fertilizer in the parked SUV, Commissioner Raymond Kelly said Sunday.” There’s also speculation about a possible South Park/Mohammed connection:

Police in New York are investigating whether a car bomb in Times Square was targeted at the makers of South Park over a controversial depiction of the Prophet Mohammed.

The device, which failed to detonate, was left near the offices of Viacom, which owns the irreverent cartoon series.

Last month postings on an Islamic website warned the creators of South Park – Matt Stone and Trey Parker – that they could face violent reprisals after an episode of the show featured Mohammed in a bear suit.

A posting on the website of a US-based group called Revolution Muslim warned Stone and Parker that they would “probably wind up like Theo Van Gogh”, the Dutch film-maker who was murdered in 2004 by a Muslim angered by his film about Muslim women.

Images of the Prophet are strictly forbidden in Islam, and Comedy Central, which broadcasts South Park, has banned Stone and Parker from depicting Mohammed in the past. In 2006 the network stopped them from featuring Mohammed in an episode which followed worldwide protests over a caricature of the Prophet by a Danish cartoonist.

The Jawa Report and Allahpundit both have lots of updates on this developing story. Just keep scrolling.