2013 Boston Marathon

The Boston Marathon, opens in a new tab is the world’s oldest annual marathon. On April 15, 2013 two bombs exploded near the finish line of the marathon, killing three spectators and wounding more than 260 others. The two brothers responsible, Dzhokhar and Tamerlan Tsarnaev, were apparently motivated by extremist Islamist beliefs, but not connected to any external terrorist organisations. They apparently chose the marathon as a target of opportunity.

• Supreme Court upholds death sentence of Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, opens in a new tab, Ariane de Vogue, CNN, (4 March 2022). The Supreme Court on Friday upheld the death sentence of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, one of the two brothers responsible for the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing which led to the deaths of three spectators and a police officer, reversing a lower court decision. Tamerlan would later die in a gunfight with police, but Dzhokhar is being held in federal prison in Florence, Colorado, following his guilty verdict.
• The Boston Marathon bombing: Lessons learned through research, opens in a new tab, Wihbey, J., Kille, L.W., Journalist’s Resource, (April 2015). Provides an overview of selected research-based papers and reports that, cumulatively, help consolidate the lessons learned from the Boston Marathon bombing.
• After Action Report for the Response to the 2013 Boston Marathon Bombings, opens in a new tab, Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency, (December 2014). The After Action Report for the Response to the 2013 Boston Marathon Bombings reflects the findings of an after action review of response and recovery activities of public safety, public health, and medical personnel related to the April 15 bombings, the care and support of those impacted by the events in the following days, and the search and apprehension of the bombing suspects. The after action review was coordinated by a multi-disciplinary, multi-jurisdictional project management team consisting of key organizations involved in response activities, with the support of a private sector, third-party vendor.
• Timeline: The Boston Marathon bombing, manhunt and investigation, opens in a new tab. Greg Botelho, CNN, (2 May 2013).
• How the Boston bombings will affect sporting event planning, opens in a new tab [audio]. Jarvis, J., ABC PM, (16 April 2013). A counter terrorism expert says even though the international terrorism threat to Western nations is reducing, major sporting event security is still very rigorous. And while it's still unclear what unfolded with security arrangements in Boston, Neil Fergus says events such as marathons which are spread over such a long area are extremely difficult to protect.
• Boston Marathon Bombings, opens in a new tab. Wikipedia, (accessed 13 January 2023).