(BOSTON) — At this year’s Boston Marathon, 12 years after the deadly marathon bombing, law enforcement will be watching “a broad set of potential soft targets for an attack,” according to a bulletin obtained by ABC News.
About 30,000 runners are participating in the April 21 race and another half-million spectators are expected along the route.
According to the bulletin, congested areas where the largest amount of people gather — particularly designated viewing areas — are likely the most vulnerable spots for a mass casualty attack, along with nearby publicly accessible areas, tunnels, pre-event gatherings and post-event celebrations.
A policy change may provide a motivation for an attack, the bulletin said, pointing to marathon organizers allowing runners to select “non-binary” regarding gender.
“Following this announcement, individuals posting content consistent with racially or ethnically motivated violent extremism posted online calling for an attack on the 2023 Boston Marathon, according to an organization that tracks violent extremist activity online,” the bulletin said. “Some of these individuals called for an attack similar to the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings.”
Three people were killed and hundreds were injured by the powerful explosives detonated near the finish line during the 2013 marathon.
There are also symbolic anniversaries that coincide with the timing of the Boston Marathon, including the holidays of Easter, Ramadan and Passover, as well as anniversaries of prior attacks that occurred in the third week of April: the Columbine High School shooting massacre on April 20, 1999; the Oklahoma City bombing on April 19, 1995; the Branch Davidians’ compound fire in Waco, Texas, on April 19, 1993; and Adolf Hitler’s birthday on April 20.
“The significance of these holidays and key dates may be viewed as an opportune time for acts of violence for many threat actors,” the bulletin said, “and it may serve as motivation to disrupt or attack the Boston Marathon or the surrounding areas along the route.”
The bulletin said law enforcement officials are unaware of any specific or credible threats to high-profile attendees of the Boston Marathon but are highlighting the threat environment for these officials’ awareness.
“Absent a specific, actionable threat to the 129th Boston Marathon, the FBI and [the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Intelligence and Analysis] are providing indicators to aid law enforcement and first responders in identifying and mitigating threats,” the bulletin said.
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