NEWS
CIA helped foil ISIS terror attack at Taylor Swift’s Vienna concert that was aimed at killing ‘tens of thousands’
A CIA official has revealed the service helped thwart an ISIS terror attack that was intended to kill ‘tens of thousands’ of fans at Taylor Swift’s Vienna concert.
Speaking at an Intelligence and National Security Summit in Maryland on Wednesday, CIA Deputy Director David Cohen said the agency provided Austrian authorities with critical information about four people who were connected to the Islamic State and were planning to attack the concert.
They were plotting to kill a huge number, tens of thousands of people at this concert, I am sure many Americans,’ Cohen said, reported the New York Times.
The official added that some of the individuals arrested were found with bomb-making materials and had direct access to the venue, where three Eras Tour shows were set to take place.
The shows, which were set to host an audience of 200,000, from August 8 to August 10, at Vienna’s Ernst Happel Stadium were quickly cancelled following the arrests.
On August 7, Austrian authorities arrested two people accused of plotting a terror attack, and others were arrested in following days.
Cohen did not clarify how the CIA had leaned about the planned attack but said: ‘I can tell you within my agency and others, there were people who thought that was a really good day for Langley,’ referring to the CIA headquarters, ‘And not just for the Swifties in the workforce.’
Three people have been arrested in connection with the terror plot, including 19-year-old Austrian ISIS fanatic, Beran A, who had pledged allegiance to the Islamic State and set his sights on Swift’s tour as a target.
He is currently considered to be the main suspect.
The other arrested suspects are a 17-year-old Austrian and an 18-year-old Iraqi – but their names have not yet been released.
Beran A. was revealed to have been building a bomb in his parent’s back garden and earlier this month it was reported the teen was radicalized by notorious hate-preacher Abul Baraa in Berlin, according to German intelligence sources.
German magazine Profil, it was claimed that Beran A. attended a business school in Neunkirchen, where he had to repeat a year and was repeatedly violent towards girls, former classmates said.
He is said to have grabbed a girl of his age by the neck and pushed her against the wall during an argument.
Just a year later, a former classmate said he harassed and groped other girls before he ‘changed his appearance a lot and became isolated’.
It emerged that Beran A. and his accomplice had planned to attack Swift’s concert venue by driving into the crowd outside and attacking them with knives and machetes before detonating a suicide bomb to kill as many fans as possible.
Beran A. had previously worked in the same stainless steel plant in Ternitz as his father.
He was doing an apprenticeship as a retail salesman in the factory, where he had access to the plant’s laboratory, including various chemicals.
During a raid on the family home in Ternitz, bomb disposal experts earlier this month secured chemicals required to produce the explosive triacetone triperoxide (TATP), which Beran A. is said to have already experimented with.
TATP is often used by ISIS in terror attacks and requires acetone as well as hydrogen peroxide, which officials confirmed was found in the house.
Following the ordeal, Taylor Swift took to Instagram to share why she initially chose to remain silent in the days after the show cancellations.
‘Having our Vienna shows canceled was devastating. The reason for the cancellations filled me with a new sense of fear, and a tremendous amount of guilt because so many people had planned on coming to those shows,’ she wrote in a post on August 21.
‘But I was also so grateful to the authorities because thanks to them, we were grieving concerts and not lives.’
The popstar and her team then worked closely with British authorities to ensure her five nights at London’s Wembley Stadium ran smoothly and safely.
‘Let me be very clear: I am not going to speak about something publicly if I think doing so might provoke those who would want to harm the fans who come to my shows,’ she continued.
‘In cases like this one, ‘silence’ is actually showing restraint, and waiting to express yourself at a time when it’s right to.
My priority was finishing our European tour safely, and it is with great relief that I can say we did that.’
(Armani)
Travis Kelce is back to playing NFL games in 2024, and now that Taylor Swift is off from the Eras Tour for a couple of months, she has some time when she can once again come to cheer him on at Kansas City Chiefs games. She was there for the Week 1 win and attended the Week 2 victory. She wasn’t there for the Week 3 game in Atlanta.
MORE: 8 photos of Taylor Swift having a blast at the Chiefs-Bengals game
So the question is: will she be there for the Week 4 matchup on Sunday afternoon between the Los Angeles Chargers and the Chiefs? According to our handy Taylor Swift calendar, she appears to not have anything planned that day. Which means we might see her there!
Stay tuned and we’ll see if she’s there.
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NEWS
Travis Kelce splashed out an eye-watering $70,000 on birthday gifts for ‘brother’ Patrick Mahomes… and here’s what he bought him
Patrick Mahomes recently celebrated his 29th birthday, and Travis Kelce reportedly broke the bank to make sure his ‘brother’ felt appreciated on his special day.
The pair have been teammates since Mahomes was drafted by the Chiefs in 2017, and they’ve gone on to strike up an incredible rapport that has helped the team win three Super Bowls.
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And according to the US Sun, Kelce splashed out $70,000 in birthday gifts for Mahomes this year.
The items are said to include an engraved Rolex watch for $54,200, with the letters ‘P’ and ‘M’ marked on the back to recognize their close friendship.
Kelce also reportedly got Mahomes a $2,300 wool cardigan from Louis Vuitton, and six bottles of Masseto red wine for $1,100 each.
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Travis Kelce reportedly gifted Patrick Mahomes $70,000 worth in lavish birthday gifts
Brittany Mahomes shared a photo of Patrick, Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift over the summer in Europe
The Sun added that Mahomes’ wife, Brittany, helped Kelce with the watch, and that he added the engravement on the back to make it more ‘personal.’
The report comes after Brittany threw a birthday party for Patrick at their home after the Chiefs beat the Bengals.
The setup included a massive black, red and silver balloon arch sprawling across a corner of the room with a giant 29 metallic cutout at the center.
Another flashy decoration took over the area underneath the staircase with a big sign reading, ‘Patrick’s 29,’ in the middle.
Brittany even had custom cups and beer holders made, featuring childhood photos of the three-time Super Bowl winner.
After winning their second straight Super Bowl (and third total) together, Mahomes and Kelce spent some quality time together over the summer.
The friends met up in Europe as Patrick and Brittany traveled to Amsterdam to see Kelce’s girlfriend, Taylor Swift, perform on her Eras Tour.
Mahomes and Kelce have struck up an incredible partnership on the field together
Brittany, who has developed a close friendship with the pop star, shared a sweet photo of the foursome from the outing.
Later in the summer, the group descended upon New York to take in the US Open Final between Taylor Fritz and Jannik Sinner.
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While the American Fritz was unable to get the win, they appeared in good spirits as they watched the game from a suite at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
NEWS
Donna Kelce Says Son Travis ‘Can’t Clean’ and ‘Can’t Cook’ But Hints He Might Be ‘Getting Some Help’ from Taylor Swift
Donna Kelce is playfully sharing some of her son Travis Kelce’s flaws.
In an interview with Extra TV, the Kelce matriarch, 71, got candid about the things the Kansas City Chiefs tight end, 34, can’t do despite his success at football and his recent hosting and acting gigs.
“He can’t clean. He can’t cook,” she listed off jokingly, before adding that he was “getting a little better.”
“I think he’s getting some help,” Donna noted, hinting that he might be picking up some tips from girlfriend Taylor Swift, 34.
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are seen during the 2024 US Open Tennis Championships. GOTHAM/GC IMAGES
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s Relationship Timeline
The 14-time Grammy winner previously shared a video on YouTube Shorts of him kissing her in the kitchen while she stirred a pot, alongside other snapshots of her life. In the brief clip, several food ingredients could be seen on the counter behind them.
When asked about his appearance in the video and the kinds of foods he liked to cook with Swift during a Chiefs press conference in June, the NFL player admitted he liked spending time in the kitchen with his girlfriend, though he declined to comment on the kinds of dishes they made together.
“I respect that question but I’m going to keep that one to myself because I thoroughly enjoy cooking with her so it’s something I’d rather just keep personal,” he responded.
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He later added in the press conference that the “Fortnight” singer “makes a great pop-tart and cinnamon roll.” She even baked for Travis’ teammates after the pair went public with their romance in September 2023.
“Kind of behind-the-scenes, she, to fit in — she didn’t even know she was doing this, I don’t think — she likes to cook, so she made the offensive linemen these homemade pop-tarts,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid revealed during an interview at the NFL Scouting Combine in February.
How Taylor Swift Supported Boyfriend Travis Kelce’s Decision to Star in Ryan Murphy’s Grotesquerie
Swift has been there to cheer Travis on as he recently returned to the football field for the NFL’s latest season. She has made appearances at the Chiefs season-opener at the beginning of this month and at the Sept. 15 Chiefs game at Arrowhead Stadium, where she wore an oversized Chiefs T-shirt paired with a pair of thigh high boots.
Swift is on a break from her tour following the conclusion of the European leg of her Eras Tour in mid-August, after playing a second set of shows at Wembley Stadium in London. Her tour is scheduled to pick back up mid-October in Miami.
Kelce previously supported the singer on tour, making an appearance at several of her European Eras Tour concerts. He even made a surprise cameo onstage during her June 23 show at London’s Wembley Stadium.
Will Taylor Swift be at Travis Kelce’s game for Chiefs-Chargers on Sunday?
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