An ABC I-Team Investigation
CHICAGO (WLS) -- ISIS has put out an instruction manual for followers on how to carry out killing missions with trucks. This comes less than a day after U.S. authorities warned of such "truck ramming" threats.
The ISIS truck attack guide is an infographic for jihadists, the latest release from ISIS propaganda arm in a magazine called Rumiyah.
It comes less than a day after the I-Team reported that Transportation Safety Administration officials were warning American shippers and truck rental companies that such attacks may be coming.
The just-available issue of ISIS' official magazine includes the guide for would-be terrorists about how to kill pedestrians with trucks.
"Just Terror Tactics: Truck Attacks" from ISIS describes which trucks will work best in attacks and how to steal one "by force or deception." The instruction manual also suggests "ideal targets" including large outdoor festivals, pedestrian-congested streets, outdoor markets and rallies.
While the timing of the ISIS primer would seem to be deliberate, if it is to be believed then the TSA has reason to be concerned.
In 17 ramming attacks around the world recently 173 people have died - including the truck ramming incident seen on video during a Bastille Day event last summer in Nice, France.
The threat of such an attack has been known since 2010, when the I-Team first reported that Al Qaeda was encouraging followers to using pick-up trucks as "mowing machines." In propaganda put out by that terror group, a picture of the Chicago skyline was the backdrop for an instruction guide on waging a one-man holy war.
But it has taken a few years for the execution of the truck ramming instructions. Now though, U.S. officials are taking notice and urging great care and caution here.
Anti-truck concrete barriers have been installed in some public places around the world, and in the U.S., including in front of the Trump Tower in New York City.
Testing is being done on new products that may better prevent a speeding truck from getting into a public place.
Two weeks ago in Germany, a new-fangled triangular barricade was tested and did stop the truck, but also injured the driver who had been enlisted for research.
TSA officials this week provided truck companies with indicators to look for that an attack may be in the works. Investigators say telltale signs of an impending attack include truck thefts and truck renters with unusual specifications such as front end height and size.