In the face of public terrorism concerns and at least one deadly shooting in Texas that may have been connected to the air strikes overseas, government agencies are heightening security — but seem to be doing so very quietly.
It’s unclear why.
“Terrorism, absolutely, may be on the table now,” Javed Ali, a University of Michigan associate professor who has worked in national security and the FBI, told the Free Press on Tuesday, March 3. “But the lack of a nationwide alert is intriguing.”
As of Tuesday afternoon, the Department of Homeland Security, which is under strain because Congress cut off funding, listed “no current advisories” on its National Terrorism Advisory System website, which is designed to update Americans about terrorist threats, but there have been reports that it sent at least one bulletin to some police departments.
The Free Press left a message on Monday, March 2, with Homeland Security.
And while the military is taking additional precautions, including tighter security at military installations such as Selfridge Air National Guard Base in Harrison Township, it did not raise the threat level.
Ali said it would be a risky calculation for the administration — if it is doing so — to make a political calculation that public warnings might diminish support for the military action, “God forbid if something happens, how do you explain that?”
There’s reason, Ali and other experts said, to be on guard.
Possible terrorism attack
On Monday, March 2, the White House called Iran “the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism,” claiming that “more Americans have been killed by Iran than any other terrorist regime on Earth.”
And the day before, a gunman who may have been inspired by the situation overseas opened fire at a bar in Austin, Texas, killing two people in their 20s and injuring more than a dozen others.
Law enforcement said the shooter was Ndiaga Diagne, a 53-year-old naturalized American citizen from Senegal. He was wearing a sweatshirt with the words “Property of Allah” on it and a T-shirt underneath emblazoned with the Iranian flag.
By Tuesday, March 3, Michigan State Police responded to a Free Press question about security, saying “there are no indications at this time of a direct threat to our state.” The agency added that it is monitoring “incidents in Michigan and around the world” and urged residents to “remain vigilant.”
And the FBI told the Free Press it is “fully engaged across the country and prepared to mobilize any security assets needed to assist federal partners — as well as state and local law enforcement.”
The Free Press also left messages with the Detroit Police Department.
Former Wayne State University adjunct professor Richard Chasdi, now a lecturer at George Washington University in Washington, DC, told the Free Press that the Texas shooting “illuminates some risk, especially by lone operatives who can be harder to intercept,” and high-profile announcements can be helpful, but also bring risk, too.
Alerts also, the terrorism expert said, heighten anxiety and “more political blowback to a highly controversial war,” which could be a reason why there weren’t more public alerts. It was, essentially, a political calculation.
Chasdi said that alerts also could heighten tensions and “inflame anger” and other sentiments, which could even unintentionally spur people who are upset about the conflict overseas to take violent action.
More security at Selfridge
Meanwhile, domestic military bases nationwide, like Selfridge, have quietly increased some security measures, based on what officials referred to as “world events.”
On Monday, March 2, when asked at a briefing about terrorism in America, specifically sleeper cells that might be activated, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth responded that “we’re paying attention” and “ready for that.”
U.S. Northern Command in Colorado Springs, Colorado, which sets the threat level for bases, told the Free Press it directed 11 additional “force protection measures to enhance vigilance and ensure the safety and security of military personnel and installations.”
A spokeswoman for the Northern Command would not discuss what the additional measures were, but said they could be, as an example, more random vehicle checks at security gates.
Some installations, she said, may have tightened security beyond what was required.
Selfridge, which would not comment on its security to the Free Press, is an important base in Michigan because it is a joint-reserve installation, meaning it hosts units from all military branches.
It also is undergoing a $1 billion upgrade to become home to F-15EX Eagle II fighter jets and KC-46 Pegasus air refueling aircraft, part of a deal announced in April when President Donald Trump landed at the base.
At the same time, Northern Command’s spokeswoman also pointed out, the “force protection level” — the level used to manage terrorist threats against U.S. military personnel and facilities, which ranges from “normal” to “delta” — did not change.
It remains at “bravo,” which is the level in the middle of the scale.
Delta is the most serious Department of Defense threat level, which is implemented when a terrorist attack has occurred or is imminent. It restricts base access to essential personnel and could potentially shut down all nonessential activities.
Homeland Security bulletins
Resources at Homeland Security — which replaced its color-coded terrorism alert system created in 2002 after the 9/11 terror attacks with the new one in 2011 — have been affected by a third week of a partial government shutdown, and its resources are strained.
But, Ali said, that would not be a reason to not issue a bulletin. And DHS’s response now is more muted than in June, when the United States bombed Iran for the first time, targeting nuclear facilities.
Back then, the department issued a bulletin that is now expired that said that “the ongoing Iran conflict” is “causing a heightened threat environment in the United States,” warning that “low-level cyberattacks against U.S. networks by pro-Iranian hacktivists” were likely.
In addition, Michigan State Police also reminded residents to be on alert amid concerns about retaliation, and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said, “We’re monitoring the situation in Iran closely and taking steps to keep Michiganders safe.”
This time, however, according to a law enforcement bulletin that was obtained by ABC News, DHS warned before the death of Iran’s supreme leader was confirmed that there was the “potential lone-wolf and cyberattacks.”
“Although a large-scale physical attack is unlikely, Iran and its proxies probably pose a persistent threat of targeted attacks in the Homeland,” the bulletin said, adding it “will almost certainly escalate retaliatory actions — or calls to action — if reports of the Ayatollah’s death are confirmed.”
The bulletin, ABC reported, went on to say: “In the short-term, we are most concerned that Iran-aligned hacktivists will conduct low-level cyberattacks against U.S. networks, such as website defacements and distributed denial-of-service attacks.”
Cyberattacks have been identified by the FBI as a growing and serious threat that includes hijacking networks, stealing cryptocurrency, corporate espionage and even attacking power grids and shutting down hospitals.
If the Texas shooting was connected to the strikes, the DHS warning proves prescient.
Contact Frank Witsil: 313-222-5022 or fwitsil@freepress.com
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Terror concerns heightened after Iran attack, but official alerts scant
Reporting by Frank Witsil, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
