How Credible Is ISIS Threat To US? FBI Vows To Protect American People
Following the release of a video showing militants affiliated with the Islamic State group threatening an attack on Washington, D.C., authorities said Monday they had no information about imminent attacks in the U.S., according to a report by the Washington City Paper. The video announced plans for an attack similar to the one seen in Paris last weekend, which left more than 120 people dead and injured hundreds of others Friday.
A spokesperson for the FBI’s Washington field office responded to the video Monday with a statement similar to one it released over the weekend:
The Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Bureau of Investigation are closely monitoring the unfolding events in Paris and we remain in contact with our counterparts in the region. At this time, there is no specific or credible threat to the United States. We will not hesitate to adjust our security posture, as appropriate, to protect the American people. DHS and the FBI routinely share information with our state, local, federal, and international law enforcement, intelligence and homeland security partners, and continually evaluate the level of protection we provide at federal facilities.
The 11-minute video threat was released by Wilayat Kirkuk, a militant group based in Salahuddin province, north of Baghdad, according to the Washington Post. It begins with select cuts from TV news clips showing the devastation of the Paris attacks.
"We say to the states that take part in the crusader campaign that, by God, you will have a day, God willing, like France's and, by God, as we struck France in the center of its abode in Paris, then we swear that we will strike America at its center in Washington," one militant in the video said, according to a report by the Independent.
The Metropolitan Police Department in Washington did not make a statement about the video, according to the City Paper. However, Chief Cathy Lanier sent an email Saturday to police discussion groups acknowledging that more officers had been dispatched to the streets until "we feel circumstances dictate that they are no longer needed."
She added: "We must always remember that Washington will always be an attractive target to those wishing to do harm to us."
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