At 7:20 AM on Monday, Dec. 11, New York City was threatened by a detonated bomb at one of its most core and iconic institutions: the subway.

Thousands of commuters, tourists, and other pedestrians desperately searched for someplace to take cover after facing the sound and smoke of the explosion in the busy underground passageway connecting Times Square Station and Port Authority Terminal in Manhattan.

The suspect was found to be 27-year old Bangladeshi man Akayed Ullah. The homemade pipe bomb was strapped to his torso with a combination of Velcro and zip ties. Investigators have concluded that the attack was an attempted suicide bombing.

The pipe bomb failed to fully ignite and go off, and Ullah was the only person in the incident seriously injured. He suffered burns to his hands and abdomen, while three other passengers suffered minor injuries.

Port Authority Terminal was evacuated for several hours after the incident, and many trains were rerouted and streets closed. But by late morning, New York City recovered remarkably and bus and subway travel was up and running.

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio commented on the attack at a news conference.

“Let’s be clear, as New Yorkers, our lives revolve around the subways,” de Blasio said. “And let’s also be clear, this was an attempted terrorist attack.”

Mayor de Blasio’s comments bring up two major points that have been the subject of conversation for decades. Especially considering the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center has made Manhattan a target for this sort of activity for years.

New York City is a beacon to the rest of the world, and in order to attempt to take it down, attacks have been carried out at the heart of the city: where people will be most affected by it.

President Donald Trump also made a statement about the matter regarding immigration reforms due to Ullah’s immigrant status.

“America must fix its lax immigration system, which allows far too many dangerous, inadequately vetted people to access our country,” Trump said.

The Dec. 11 would-be suicide bombing will be added to the long list of unjustified attacks, both foreign and domestic, that New York City, and the rest of America, have faced in recent years.