The suicide bombing that killed 22 people and injured dozens of others in Manchester this week will likely become a lot more common, Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly told Congress Thursday as he defended President Trump’s new budget.
“As horrible as Manchester was, my expectation is we’re going to see a lot more of that type of attack,” Kelly told the Senate.
The secretary, a former Marine general, said persons who have been radicalized and went to join the fight in Iraq and Syria have been told by Islamic State leaders not to die defending the caliphate there, but instead return to sow chaos at home.Responding to complaints that the new Trump budget cuts funds,Mr. Kellysaid every part of the U.S. is a potential target, and there isn’t enough money to go around.
Kelly also noted that terrorists continue to be fixated on striking the aviation industry.
“Ideally big airplanes, ideally a U.S. carrier, ideally on the way to the United States,” he said. “We are watching a number of very sophisticated, advanced threats.”
Kelly announced in March that airline passengers would be restricted from bringing large electronic devices on flights coming from 10 foreign airports, and an expansion is likely.
