TERRORISMIran Will Retaliate in the U.S. We May Not See It in Time.
Given Iran’s history of malicious operations outside of its soil, the concern about the Iranian threat is unsurprising. Long before this current conflict, Iran has engaged in terrorist attacks, targeted assassinations, cyberattacks, and information operations—and it uses a network of proxies and spies to amplify its reach, including within the United States. Historically, the U.S. has managed to thwart Iranian operations on its soil. Now, this administration may have us unprepared.
On the first day of the U.S.-Israeli airstrikes in Iran, a strange short-wave radio signal began broadcasting a message in Farsi. A man’s voice repeatedly announced, “Tavajjoh! Txavajjoh!” (Attention! Attention!), followed by a string of numbers. As of late last week, the voice has broadcast the seemingly random numbers nearly 10 times.
The mysterious broadcast immediately sparked concern. Some have suggested it is someone outside Iran trying to reach inside the country. The federal government appears concerned that it may be a person or agency inside Iran communicating a message “intended to activate or provide instructions to prepositioned sleeper assets operating outside of Iran.”
Given Iran’s history of malicious operations outside of its soil, that concern is unsurprising. Long before this current conflict, Iran has engaged in terrorist attacks, targeted assassinations, cyberattacks, and information operations—and it uses a network of proxies and spies to amplify its reach, including within the United States.
This time, however, there is one crucial difference. In previous administrations, hundreds of national security professionals across agencies relentlessly pursued answers and took action to thwart attacks during international conflict, respond, and hold the perpetrators accountable. But the Trump administration has gutted this capacity through firings, forced resignations, and slashed budgets at agencies such as the FBI, the Justice Department, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the National Security Agency (NSA), and more. The public servants who remain are already stretched thin, and many have been assigned to other White House priorities like immigration enforcement and Epstein document review.
Reducing our capacity to monitor, prevent, and respond to Iranian attacks at home at a time of heightened risk—brought on by U.S. international conflict with a foreign state sponsor of terror—poses a serious national security concern. The recent history of Iranian operations on U.S. soil shows how our agencies and procedures can effectively thwart such attempts when they are at full capacity. In contrast, a survey of how this administration has dramatically weakened those agencies and procedures shows how vulnerable the U.S. and its citizens may be to Iranian attacks now.
Terror Attacks and Assassination Plots
When asked whether Americans should be worried about retaliatory attacks on U.S. soil after the United States launched strikes on Iran, Trump recently responded, “I guess.”
“We expect some things,” he continued, “some people will die.”
