The FBI and several major cities on Sunday elevated their security protocols and police patrols in light of the U.S. military strike on Iran.
FBI Director Kash Patel said he put counterterrorism and intelligence teams on high alert following the joint U.S.-Israel airstrikes that killed Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Saturday.
“Our [Joint Terrorism Task Forces] throughout the country are working 24/7, as always, to address and disrupt any potential threats to the homeland,” Mr. Patel said. “While the military handles force protection overseas, the FBI remains at the forefront of deterring attacks here at home — and will continue to have our team work around the clock to protect Americans.”
One of the FBI’s counterterrorism units is investigating a mass shooting at a bar early Sunday in Austin, Texas. The gunman, who was identified only as a man, killed two people and wounded 14 before he was fatally shot by police.
Metropolitan Police in the District said they are coordinating with local and federal law enforcement partners in order to safeguard the nation’s capital.
“At this time, there are no known threats to D.C.,” the department said in a statement. “We are prepared to increase our presence as needed.”
Police in Prince George’s County and Montgomery County in the Maryland suburbs said they are increasing patrols throughout their jurisdictions out of an abundance of caution.
Montgomery County police said they are directing patrols around houses of worship and other “sensitive locations” following Saturday’s military operation.
The New York Police Department said it increased patrols at sensitive locations around the city, such as the United Nations and other diplomatic hubs, as well as cultural and religious sites.
Law enforcement agencies throughout the Delaware Valley, which includes Philadelphia; Wilmington, Delaware; and Trenton and Camden in New Jersey, have also boosted security at cultural and religious sites in response to the attacks.
Iranian officials swore to retaliate after the strikes left Khamenei and roughly 40 other high-ranking officials dead in the joint military operation carried out in Tehran.
The Department of Homeland Security said an attack on the U.S. remains slim, though there is a threat of low-level cyberattacks.
