A law enforcement task force disabled an explosive device found in the parking lot of the Austin Women’s Health Center on Wednesday. Four lanes of a nearby highway were closed as the Austin Police Department worked with the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives to determine that a suspicious package contained explosive powder. “It was determined that the package… would have caused serious bodily injury and/or death had it functioned,” an Austin Police Department statement said. The device was successfully disarmed by a robot, and nobody was hurt.
According to the Feminist Majority Foundation’s National Clinic Violence Survey, 18.4 percent of clinics across the country are targets of severe violence, including arsons, bombings, chemical attacks, gunfire, and invasion. The most recent incident comes in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold a federal abortion procedure ban. “The extremists in the anti-abortion movement have been emboldened by the latest Supreme Court decision,” said Katherine Spillar, executive vice president of the Feminist Majority Foundation. “These domestic terrorists will continue to attack women’s health clinics across the country until their financial and support networks are closed down.”
Local police and federal officers have opened a criminal investigation.
