Australian authorities said a planned terror attack against the country’s Jewish community was foiled by investigators. Officials said they discovered a camper loaded with explosives in a Sydney suburb.

When did the police discover the camper?

“Police were made aware of a van with explosive material located in Dural. They’ve been conducting investigation into the site, into the van, into the owners of the van, and any associates of the owners that van since that time,” New South Wales Premier Chris Minns, said.

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The discovery happened on Sunday, Jan. 19, but the public was not notified until Wednesday, Jan. 29. The next day, Thursday, Jan. 30, law enforcement revealed the owner of the caravan is in police custody for separate antisemitic crimes.

Why did police wait to release details?

NSW Police Force Deputy Commissioner David Hudson and Premier Minns defended the decision to keep the information a secret until this week.

Both argued that the decision to keep details from the public were to protect the investigation. Hudson criticized the media for hurting the ongoing probe by publishing important information.

“We still are after other offenders that we believe may be involved,” Hudson said. “To come out prior to it being put out by particular news establishments would compromise our job that was going to happen once it became, so we felt, so we’ve been in discussions with the government, and we’ve sort of disclosed fully what we’re aware of and where we’re going with this job.”

Hudson also claimed police made arrests on the “periphery” of the case during the 10 days since the van’s discovery. However, authorities would not reveal the charges. Hudson also declined to disclose potential targets of the alleged plot during the press conference.

What was found inside the van?

However, the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies said on Wednesday, Jan. 29, that the van had a note outlining potential Jewish community targets.

Investigators believe the latest terror plot is related to several arson and vandalism incidents in the Sydney area in recent weeks. Investigators found stolen putty explosives and a note with an obscenity toward Jewish people in the van.

Authorities did not find a detonation device at the scene. They don’t believe there is an ongoing threat to the public.

What’s next in the investigation?

Hudson said a counterterrorism operation of 100 officers has been put on the case. That group is working with numerous local and federal agencies in the investigation.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese promised the “full might” of the law will be brought to find the perpetrators of the planned terror attack. He said, “Hate and extremism have no place in Australian society.”

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Some within the Jewish community in Sydney and Melbourne have called on the Australian government to do more in the wake of antisemitism. The area has seen a spike since Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, and subsequent war in Gaza. Australian officials also note, anti-Muslim acts have also risen since the start of the war.

President Donald Trump addressed the nation just hours after a midair collision involving a commercial jet and army helicopter near Washington, D.C. It’s considered a recovery operation with Trump confirming there are no survivors.

“This was a dark and excruciating night in our nation’s capital and in our nation’s history,” Trump said after holding a moment of silence for the victims.

Both aircraft crashed around 9 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 29, into the Potomac River near Reagan Airport.

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Who was aboard the plane and helicopter?

Some of the 64 people aboard the plane, which departed from Wichita, Kansas, were figure skaters attending a national skating championship.

The Kremlin confirmed Russian figure skaters were also on board.

The three soldiers aboard the helicopter were on an annual flight training.

What is President Trump saying about the cause?

While an official cause of the crash has not yet been announced, President Trump said the White House has “strong opinions” of how it may have happened, alluding to the helicopter pilot being at fault.

“The helicopter had vision of the plane, and for some reason, there weren’t any adjustments made,” Trump said. “The people in the helicopter should have been able to see.”

Trump also noted that the two aircraft should have been at different heights. Officials said that initial information indicated that nothing was unusual about the moments leading up to the crash.

At the press conference, President Trump also placed blame on previous Democratic administrations.

“We must have only the highest standards for those who work in our aviation system,” Trump said. “I changed the Obama standards from very mediocre at best to extraordinary.”

Why did President Trump mention DEI?

President Trump also appeared to blame a “diversity push” at the FAA for the midair collision, reading some news headlines.

“I do want to point out that various articles that appeared prior to my entering office. And here’s one: the FAA’s diversity push includes focus on hiring people with severe intellectual and psychiatric disabilities,” Trump said.

When he was asked to clarify why he thought a diversity push played a role, he said, “It just could have been. We have a high standard. We’ve had a higher, much higher standard than anybody else.”

Trump did not cite any evidence.

He also placed blame on the Biden administration’s transportation secretary, Pete Buttigieg, using an expletive to describe Buttigieg’s time in office.

“He’s a disaster now. He’s just got a good line of bulls—,” Trump said of Buttigieg. “Well, he runs it, 45,000 people, and he’s run it right into the ground with his diversity.”

Buttigieg responded to Trump in a post on X.

“Despicable. As families grieve, Trump should be leading, not lying,” Buttigieg said. “We put safety first, drove down close calls, grew Air Traffic Control, and had zero commercial crash fatalities out of millions of flights on our watch.”

Despicable. As families grieve, Trump should be leading, not lying. We put safety first, drove down close calls, grew Air Traffic Control, and had zero commercial airline crash fatalities out of millions of flights on our watch.
President Trump now oversees the military and the…

— Pete Buttigieg (@PeteButtigieg) January 30, 2025

What is Trump’s transportation secretary saying?

Trump’s pick for transportation secretary, Sean Duffy, who just started the job, also spoke during the press conference.

“When Americans take off in airplanes, they should expect to land at their destination — that didn’t happen yesterday,” Duffy said. “That’s not acceptable, and so we will not accept excuses. We will not accept passing the buck.”

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Is it safe to fly?

President Trump said while the investigation into the crash is ongoing, people should not be hesitant to fly and added the United States has the safest air travel in the world.