Max Matza
Live reporter

Sun has now set on New Orleans' iconic French Quarter. Bourbon Street, where an attacker killed 14 people when a pickup truck drove into a crowd over the New Year holiday, has re-opened to buskers and tourists once again.

Officials are still investigating the background of 42-year suspect Shamsud-Din Jabbar, but say they have concluded that he was motivated by the Islamic State group, and that he acted alone.

And the FBI says there is not yet any indication that the attack is linked to the Tesla truck that exploded in Las Vegas outside a Trump hotel on Wednesday, killing the driver.

The city's famous jazz music paused earlier this evening at the Sugar Bowl football game, which was postponed from yesterday due to the attack. The tens of thousands of fans in the stadium for the annual university game held a moment of silence for the victims before kick-off.

We're concluding our live coverage now, but you can still keep up with the latest below:

• Fans flock to Sugar Bowl in New Orleans after deadly New Year's attack
• The rev of an engine and then screams - how revelry turned to mayhem in New Orleans
• Who were the victims of the New Orleans attack?

Anna Adams
Reporting from New Orleans

Image source, Anna Adams / BBC

Image source, Anna Adams / BBC

It's city's first night returning to some semblance of normal after the New Year's attack here in New Orleans. The National Guard have set up road blocks along Canal Street right at the entrance of Bourbon Street in preparation for the end of the end of the annual Sugar Bowl university football game that was postponed for this afternoon.

An officer said: “We have more than 50,000 fans coming out the Superdome less than a mile away, and whether they're going home, to their cars, hotels or to the French Quarter, we're here for them. It's never been safer.”

Further inside the French Quarter, law enforcement patrol Bourbon Street on horseback, guarding the Royal Sonesta hotel, where Wednesday morning's attack took place.

Image source, Anna Adams / BBC

Image source, Anna Adams / BBC

Anna Adams
Reporting from New Orleans

New Orleanians are returning to the French Quarter in their droves, just a day and a half after Wednesday's deadline

Skipper Bond, 53 and Ashley Bond, 49 who live in the city drove downtown to pay their respects.

"We were really compelled to come down here to support New Orleans and the city and to not let fear take over and win.

"This is a city where people come together to... unite and share. It's a small city but it has a big sense of community. When bad things happen you show up.2

Alex Ellis, 26, was visiting home from San Francisco. “I felt like I just needed to come out here today. There was a pull. I wanted to pay my respects and walk down Bourbon Street like usual.

"I feel positive about the city's ability to bounce back from tragedy and despair," Ellis said. "We've done it many times before."

Anna Adams
Reporting from New Orleans

Image source, Getty Images

Just as the Sugar Bowl football game kicked off across town, the brass bands started returning to the re-opened Bourbon Street after Wednesday morning's deadly attack.

Da One Way brass band is back in their usual spot outside Bourbon House Oyster bar on Bourbon Street, at the very spot where the attacker drove his truck into crowds of revellers.

Band member Darnell Simms, 23, told the crowd: "A terrible thing happened here. But we're back, we're here to remember those we lost."

Dickie Brennan, who owns the oyster bar and three other restaurants in the French Quarter said: “I feel incredibly emotional hearing the music coming back."

"Everyone's feeling mixed emotions. It's incomprehensible this could've happened on our doorstep just 36 hours ago," he said.

Image source, Anna Adams / BBC

He pointed out a woman putting money in the band's tip bucket, calling it an example of "how much people in this city care, and we'll rise again".

Brennan spoke about the city's other problems in the past, including Hurricane Katrina in 2005 which killed 1,800 people.

"We overcame Katrina, God knows how many hurricanes, oil spills, crime. And one guy will not stop this beautiful city and special neighbourhood,” he said.

"This city is resilient, we have to be. Look outside, and we're already seeing people come back to Bourbon Street," he continued.

"Come back tonight, it’ll be packed. It’s the heart of the city.”

President Joe Biden was just asked by reporters at an unrelated event at the White House whether he has any plans to travel to New Orleans in the wake of the deadly terror attack.

"I'm going to try," he told them.

The BBC's Sumi Somaskanda has spoken with Jack Bech - the brother of Martin "Tiger" Bech, who was killed in the New Orleans attack on Wednesday. Jack described the last moments of his brother's life.

"That's my best friend, my inspiration, my role model. We talked every day," he said about his brother.

"The last words that we ever told each other was: I told him to be safe and that I loved him. And he told me how much he loved me," Jack said, describing their last phone call.

"He was a beast in every in every way in life. You know, his name was Tiger, and it was very, very fitting," he continued.

You can watch the conversation above.

Image source, Supplied

Fourteen people were killed in the early hours of New Year's Day after Shamsud-Din Jabbar drove a truck through Bourbon Street before he was shot dead by officers.

The 14 fatalities include Martin 'Tiger' Bech, a well-known American college football player and Nikyra Cheyenne Dedeaux, 18, a young aspiring nurse who had snuck out with a cousin for the evening.

Reggie Hunter, 37, store manager and father-of-two and Nicole Perez, mother of a four-year-old, also died in the attack.

The parents of Matthew Tenedorio, an audio-visual technician, have described their "disbelief" at the loss of their 25-year-old son.

Kareem Badawi, a University of Alabama student, and Hubert Gauthreaux, 21, a former student at Archbishop Shaw, were also killed.

We have gotten new information about two other victims who were named in recent hours:

Drew Dauphin, a 2023 graduate of Auburn University in Alabama, has been named as one of the 14 killed.

"Words cannot convey the sorrow the Auburn Family feels for Drew’s family and friends during this unimaginably difficult time," the university's president Christopher Roberts wrote in a Facebook post.

Billy DiMaio, a 25-year-old from New Jersey, was also killed. His company said: "Billy will be fondly remembered for his unwavering work ethic, positive attitude, and kindness."

At least 39 people are still being treated at hospitals in the area, according to BBC's US partner CBS.

• Who were the victims of the New Orleans attack?

Image source, Reuters

US President Joe Biden has held a meeting with his homeland security team to discuss the investigations into the attack in New Orleans, as well the car explosion in Las Vegas, according to the White House.

Speaking after the meeting, Biden says people in New Orleans have "sent an unmistakable message" that they "will not let this attack and the attacker's deluded ideology overcome us".

"We will continue to relentlessly pursue [Islamic State] and other terrorist organisations where they are, and they'll find no safe harbour here," Biden adds.

Bernd Debusmann
Reporting from New Orleans

Before I headed out to the Superdome, I spoke to Jovon Miguel Bell - a New Orleans man who was just discharged from the hospital after being caught up in the attack.

He's still wearing the clothes he wore on the morning of 1 January.

Jovon's memories of the attack are hazy - he freely admits he was "drunk as hell" at the time of the attack in the early hours of New Year's Day - but he does vaguely remember what landed him in the hospital.

"I'm walking down the street and I hear the screams. Ruckus. Chaos," he says. "As soon as I turn around, I got hit [by a person] and fall to the ground. I got stepped on, multiple times."

As he speaks, Jovon lifts his shirt to show cuts and bruises across his torso which he says were the result of getting trampled.

Now free from hospital, he has headed straight back to the bars of Bourbon Street, where he says he's feeling lucky he escaped with minor injuries.

"I'm blessed, to be honest. God is good," he tells me. "Blessings to the victims and their families."

Carl Nasman
Reporting from Bourbon Street

A woman overcome with emotion kneels in front of 14 roses laid to honour the New Orleans victims.

She tells me she works on Bourbon Street and was here the night of the attack. This is her first time returning to the scene - she sys she was afraid to return until today.

More memorials and more emotions are emerging here as the street reopens and people gather to mourn while others start to carry on with the city's culture of fun.

Image source, Carl Nasman / BBC

Image source, Carl Nasman / BBC

New Orleans is mourning the loss of at least 14 people after a pick-up truck drove into a crowd of people in the city’s French Quarter in the early hours of New Year’s Day.

In the latest episode of Americast, Justin Webb, Anthony Zurcher and Marianna Spring explain what we know so far and how both Joe Biden and the incoming president, Donald Trump, have responded to the attack.

You can listen on BBC Sounds here or wherever you get your podcasts.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from New Orleans

Image source, Getty Images

I'm now at New Orleans' Caesars Superdome - where hundreds of fans are still trickling in for the start of today's Sugar Bowl between the University of Georgia and Notre Dame.

Security is extremely tight around the stadium. Several blocks are shut in either direction, meaning that many people need to walk 25 or 30 minutes to get here.

At every corner, police vehicles - including large armoured cars - are parking, with heavily armed police officers standing nearby with rifles.

Throughout the course of the day, we've heard from a string of officials vowing that the event would be safe. In many ways, it's a dress rehearsal for the upcoming Super Bowl.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

A moment of silence has just been held at the stadium where the Sugar Bowl is taking place.

The solemn silence in the crowd of thousands came before the start of the annual college football game, which was postponed from yesterday due to the attack.

The Southeastern Conference (SEC) final is being contested this year by the University of Georgia and Notre Dame.

Ahead of the game, Louisiana governor Jeff Landry appeared on the SEC's TV network to speak about the decision to delay the game.

"Louisiana loves football," he said.

We can now share some more details about the man believed to have rented a Tesla Cybertruck that exploded in Las Vegas on New Year’s Day outside the Trump Hotel.

He was identified earlier today as Matthew Alan Livelsberger.

The US Department of Defense has confirmed Livelsberger had decades of experience in the military.

He served in the active duty Army from January 2006 to March 2011 before he joined the National Guard. He joined the Army Reserve from July 2012 to December 2012 and was later a US Army Special Operations soldier - an elite unit more commonly known as the Green Berets.

During his service, Livelsberger received many awards, including four prestigious Bronze Stars - one of which the US Army said was "with valour" which are given for displays of heroism in combat.

The Army Special Operations Command says Livelsberger was on approved leave from his unit based in German city of Stuttgart at the time of his death.

The FBI confirmed earlier today there is "no definitive link" between the Cybertruck explosion and the New Orleans attack.

Image source, Getty Images

Jason Williams, local district attorney of the Orleans parish, just appeared on the BBC News Channel and says the reopening of Bourbon Street earlier is a "big moment".

"Bourbon Street is going to be back open for business" he says.

The district attorney describes how law enforcement trawled through volumes of data to be able to conclude the perpetrator of the New Year's Day attack was a "lone wolf".

Williams said he has "complete confidence" that local and Louisiana state security have done everything possible to ensure the area is safe for residents and for the Sugar Bowl, the annual college football game which is scheduled to begin at 15:00 local time (21:00 GMT).

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from New Orleans

Bourbon Street, where the attack took place, has just re-opened - and the vast majority of people that are starting to trickle in are here for the upcoming Sugar Bowl game between the University of Georgia and Notre Dame. Almost everyone is wearing red, for Georgia, or green, blue and gold for Notre Dame. Many are having a few beers before heading over to the stadium.

While they're excited, many say the mood is more sombre than they hoped for when they made plans to come.

"It's a weird vibe in town," said Thomas Godal, a Houston man who drove five hours to support Notre Dame. "But this is now the safest place to be, with all the cops everywhere and everyone investigating it," he added. Together with a friend, Godal arrived on New Year's Day, after the attack. They extended their trip once the game was rescheduled. "But this is a cool place to stay another night," his friend chimed in.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from New Orleans

Rapper Master P, a native of New Orleans, just made a surprise appearance to the corner of Canal and Bourbon Street, where he vowed he would do what he can to help the city recover.

"We've got to show the people we're not stopping. We are going to move on," he said.

"Even this evil stuff that came against us is not going to stop us."

Master P, whose real name is Percy Robert Miller, added that "the spirit of Bourbon Street never changes".

"This is a town where we continue to celebrate.

"This is a New Orleans thing. This is our culture. This is what it's about."

Madeline Halpert
US reporter

We're still learning more details about the background of the New Orleans attacker, Shamsud-Din Jabbar.

Jabbar, 42, was a US citizen from Texas and an Army veteran, and had been an employee of Deloitte, a professional services company.

Javed Ali, a University of Michigan professor and counter-terrorism expert, says suspects in these types of attacks often have little in common and frequently come from different socioeconomic backgrounds and jobs.

But he says attackers typically will have posted videos to social media pledging their allegiance to jihadist groups. The FBI said Jabbar pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group in online videos.

Ali says the process of becoming radicalised typically takes place over a long period of time.

"I think it was a gradual process for [Jabbar], because that does seem to be the commonality in this phenomena, in which there aren't a lot of commonalities," he says.

Image source, FBI

The FBI revelead yesterday evening that the attack was carried out by Shamsud-Din Jabbar, 42, an Army veteran and US citizen born in Texas. We've been looking into his background since, here's what we know so far:

According to a now-removed LinkedIn profile, Jabbar worked in various roles in the US Army, including in human resources and IT, before he was discharged. He was deployed to Afghanistan from February 2009 to January 2010.

He studied at Georgia State University from 2015 to 2017, graduating with a degree in computer information systems.

Accountancy firm Deloitte confirmed that Jabbar was hired by the company in 2021.

He was married three times and has children from two relationships. His first marriage ended in 2012, and his second lasted from 2013 to 2016. He married once again in 2017 before divorcing in 2022.

Court records relating to Jabbar's most recent divorce point to financial problems. He disclosed more than $40,000 in credit card debt and said the real estate company he founded was losing money.

He said his monthly expenses, including child support, exceeded his income.

But in separate documents his then-wife accused him of financial mismanagement and obtained a temporary restraining order against him.

• Read more about what we know about the New Orleans attack and driver here

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from New Orleans

Image source, Christine Bounds

Earlier today, I spoke to Christina Bounds, whose cousin, Matthew Tenedorio, was among those killed in the attacks.

Tenedorio, an audio-visual technician at the New Orleans' Superdome stadium, had just turned 25 in October.

According to Bounds, Tenedorio's family "begged him not to go" to the Bourbon Street area on New Year's Eve, concerned by the size of the crowds and potential dangers. He had been at his family's home in the town of Slidell earlier in the evening.

He decided to go to celebrate and when the attack took place was separated from his friends.

The family believe he was killed in the exchange of gunfire between police and the suspect - but have not been able to get any answers from authorities or the police.

"We couldn't get any information when my aunt [Tenedorio's mother, Cathy] showed up at the hospital," she said.

"There has been no information from doctors, hospitals, or cops. Nobody.

"They have zero information, and that's the part that's pissing everybody off. We don't even know what happened. Was he carried out by the EMS [emergency medical services]? Was he in an ambulance? Did he die instantly?"

These answers, she added, would "help people accept" what happened.

"But now it's like total shock. It's not registering."