Ari Ashe, wtop
WASHINGTON – The District of Columbia ranks as the fifth top “terrorist hot spot,” according to a new University of Maryland study.
Manhattan comes in at No. 1 with 343 attacks.
Los Angeles, Miami, San Francisco end up ahead of Washington, which had 79 attacks.
“Mainly, terror attacks have been a problem in the bigger cities, but rural areas are not exempt,” says lead author Gary LaFree of the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism.
The report finds that between 1970 and 2008, nearly one-third of the attacks happened in the top five cities.
Among the causes are extreme politics, religion, nationalism and single issue causes.
Researchers note their study does not include foiled terrorist plots, which have jumped in the decade since Sept. 11.
LaFree say he has already heard from congressional staffers and intelligence officials with questions about his work.