The appalling carnage in New Orleans in the early hours of January 1 has caused international revulsion and demonstrated again how vulnerable urban centres can be to carefully planned attacks by extremists.
At least 15 people died, with dozens more seriously injured, when a pick-up truck was driven at high speed into crowds celebrating the New Year in the Louisiana city’s famous French Quarter.
The perpetrator, Shamsud-Din Jabbar (42), who had links to the Islamic State (IS) group, was alone, although the authorities suspect he may have had assistance from others, proving how difficult it is to prevent the murderous intentions of a single individual.
He had improvised explosive devices, but it appears they did not detonate, and the overall death toll was caused because he was able to acquire automatic weapons as readily as he hired his vehicle.
Most of the victims were killed when the truck mounted the pavement, but Jabbar, a US Army veteran, also opened fire on terrified pedestrians before he was shot dead by police officers.
The authorities are investigating possible connections to an explosion hours later when a hired Tesla Cybertruck, packed with fuel cannisters and firework mortars, exploded outside a hotel in Las Vegas owned by Donald Trump, killing the driver but only causing minor injuries among bystanders.
There will also be deep concern over the similarities with the atrocity in the German city of Magdeburg on December 20 when an SUV was driven into shoppers at a Christmas market, killing five people and injuring more than 230 others.
In both New Orleans and Magdeburg, barriers which were designed to prevent vehicles from deliberately targeting members of the public in built-up areas provided entirely ineffective.
Cities across Europe and the US will plainly have to urgently consider introducing comprehensive safety measures which ensure that cars and lorries can no longer be driven close to districts where large numbers of civilians assemble.
It is also essential that all our political leaders offer measured responses to terrorism which do not promote misinformation in any way.
Mr Trump immediately linked the New Orleans massacre to immigrants, even though it swiftly emerged that Jabbar was born in Texas and actually trained in the use of weapons by the US military.
The incoming president also remains firmly opposed to tightening American gun laws, although they are routinely exploited by those planning mass murder for deranged personal or political reasons.
While Mr Trump has a mandate from the electorate, it is vital that the key decisions he takes after his inauguration later this month are based on rational assessments rather than ideology-driven miscalculations.
