Car Bomb in Times Square: It's Time for NY to Accept it is a Terrorism Target

car bomb times square

It's frightening to think about the possible consequences of the "amateurish" and thankfully undetonated car bomb that shut down Times Square yesterday. Times Square is one of New York City's busiest areas, and the car bomb was found at a time when people in their droves were headed to the theater, coming out of hotels, enjoying restaurants and just walking around the area. The bomb didn't go off, and the police and the local people -- it was a local street vendor who alerted police to the car -- did a good job of protecting the public.

At a time when the trial of 9/11 suspects is about to begin in New York, this incident is yet another reminder for New Yorkers that the city is a sitting target for terrorists. It is the very things that New Yorkers love about their city – the tall buildings, the sights, the nightlife, the culture, the fact that it is a global hub - that make it a target.

Hearing about this bomb instantly reminded me of my hometown, London. We've had our fair share of bombs – both ones that have gone off and those that haven't -- over the years. The last attempt at a car bombing bears similar characteristics to this one: a car packed with explosives was left parked in the center of London outside a nightspot in between Leicester and Trafalgar squares, which are London's equivalents of Times Square. Its effects, had it gone off, would have been catastrophic. Like the Times Square one, the public was saved by vigilant locals.

Perhaps the main difference between London and New York is that we Londoners have been the target of terrorists for a long, long time, and we have had to accept that it is one of the downsides of living in a major city. Long before al-Qaeda, we had the IRA, the deadly Irish Republican Army, who, in their bid to free Ireland from the British, would plant bombs on trains, buses, in street trash cans, on the tube, in shopping centers and pretty much wherever they could.

I recall going on to buses and lifting up the seats to check that there was nothing planted underneath them. After the IRA ceased terrorist activities in 2002, there were various individuals, such as the London nail bomber, who waged a 13-day bombing campaign against black, gay and Bangladeshi Londoners in 1999, as well as groups like al-Qaeda, which have continued to target Londoners. We Londoners have grown up knowing that terrorism is unfortunately always lurking in the background.

No doubt there are some asking why, when still healing from 9/11, New York can't catch a break. Realistically, though, this bomb is not going to be the last one. Both before and after 9/11, terrorists targeted New York. There was the bomb that went off in the basement of the World Trade Center in 1993, killing six people, for example. More recently, terrorists have been found plotting to cause havoc on the city's subway system.

The key is for residents to be vigilant and aware of their surroundings and for intelligence efforts to be stepped up. On a wider level, the world must work to eliminate the hatred that leads people to wish to maim and kill innocents. Politically, we will be hearing more about this incident and whether President Barack Obama is doing enough to protect Americans from terrorists, whether homegrown or foreign.

For now, however, like Londoners did many years ago, it may be time for New Yorkers to accept that, along with being one of the best cities in the world, it is also a hot spot for terrorists.