Terrorism

Shahzad’s Motive: Revenge for Drone Attacks?

Before that, he seemed a normal man.

By all counts, Faisal Shahzad was a normal man before he became a terrorist: He had a good job as a financial analyst, enjoyed eating at Red Lobster, and worked out at Planet Fitness. What pushed him over the edge? He was an outspoken critic of the war in Iraq, but the New York Post says his attempted attack on Times Square was in retaliation for drone attacks in Pakistan that wiped out Taliban leadership. That still doesn’t quite explain why he quit his job in July 2009 to return to Pakistan; he told people at the time it was to aid his sick parents. But once he was there, sources tell the Post that he was eyewitness to some of the drone attacks.