Former FBI leader says US isn't ready for 'new era' of terrorism following New Orleans attack

Former FBI Executive Assistant Director Christopher Piehota said Thursday that he doesn't believe the U.S. is be prepared for the new wave of terrorism that is starting in the U.S., following the New Orleans attack which is being investigated as a terror attack. 

"I think it's a new era for the United States," Piehota said on the "John Solomon Reports" podcast. "This type of terrorism has been around for years. It used to be the province of groups like the Irish Republican Army and other earlier iterations of terror groups. But this is going to be new to the United States. And I will tell you ... we are not ready for it."

On New Year's Day, a man drove a pickup truck through a crowd of people in the French Quarter before opening fire on police with a gun, killing 15 and injuring dozens.

The suspect was identified as 42-year-old Shamsud Din Jabbar, a U.S. citizen and Army veteran from Texas. He died in a shootout with police after the incident. 

On the same day, a Tesla truck caught fire and exploded outside of President-elect Donald Trump’s Las Vegas hotel. The cyber bomber was also identified as a military man.

Piehota predicted that future terrorist attacks in the U.S. would likely be carried out using guerrilla tactics that will be low tech but will "beat high tech."

"You're going to see the use of IED's, vehicles as ramming devices or penetration devices, and you're going to see these people are willing to fight to the death," he said. "That fighting to the death mentality will either negate or defeat a lot of our security measures."