"Last night, I instructed our counterterrorism and intelligence teams to be on high alert and mobilize all assisting security assets needed. Officials were watching Hezbollah closely. The Iranian-backed terror group had previously indicated it would stay out of the fight if American strikes on Iran were limited, but its leadership has long maintained that any move against Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei would change that."
"In New York, the FBI and the New York Police Department's Joint Terrorism Task Force were monitoring pro-Iran groups who were active on social media Saturday praising Iran's response and urging supporters to mobilize - rhetoric officials described as hostile but not yet operational, according to a task force situational awareness report. No specific threats against US targets had been identified."
"Iran has spent years trying to silence its critics on American soil, and New York has been a repeated target. In 2022, the Federal Bureau of Investigation arrested a man carrying a loaded military-style rifle outside the Brooklyn home of Masih Alinejad, a Voice of America host and one of Iran's most prominent dissidents, and investigated the case as a possible assassination plot."
Following US and Israeli military operations against Iran, FBI Director Kash Patel activated counterterrorism and counterintelligence teams nationwide. In New York, the FBI and NYPD Joint Terrorism Task Force monitored pro-Iran groups expressing support on social media, though no specific operational threats were identified. Officials closely watched Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed terror group, for any indication it would enter the conflict. The Department of Homeland Security coordinated with federal partners to identify and prevent potential threats. Iran has historically targeted US-based critics and dissidents, with New York being a repeated focus of Iranian intelligence operations.
#counterterrorism #iran-us-tensions #hezbollah-monitoring #domestic-security-threats #iranian-intelligence-operations
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