FBI warns of potential violence by terrorist groups ahead of Oct 7 attack anniversary

The United States’ Federal Bureau of Investigation issued a warning regarding a possible eruption of violence ahead of the first anniversary of the October 7 attack conducted by Hamas in southern Israel, which eventually led to the ongoing Gaza war and the overall crisis in the Middle East. The federal agency on Friday said that the anniversary “may be a motivating factor for violent extremists and hate crime perpetrators to engage in violence or threaten public safety.”

The FBI issued the message in collaboration with the Department of Homeland Security. The bureau stated that foreign terrorist organizations and other extremists may seek to “motivate threat actors across ideologies, including those who espouse violent antisemitism and Islamophobia, to engage in violence. Individuals inspired by this online messaging could act alone to commit an attack with little to no warning.”

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“Jewish, Muslim, or Arab institutions — including synagogues, mosques/Islamic centres, and community centres — and large public gatherings, such as memorials, vigils, or other lawful demonstrations, present attractive targets for violent attacks or for hoax threats by a variety of threat actors, including violent extremists and hate crime perpetrators. Such actors may view the anniversary as an opportunity to conduct an attack or other high-profile, illegal activity,” the statement further reads.

The FBI went on to urge people to call 911 to report any sort of emergencies and asked people to “be aware” of their surroundings at all times. “For concerns involving US citizens abroad, to include reporting missing persons or individuals taken as hostages, please call the Department of State’s Overseas Citizens Services (OCS),” the federal agency furthers.

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Biden administration attempts to prevent catastrophe in West Asia 

Amid the chaos, top officials from the US State Department told CNN that Israel has not given the Biden administration any sort of assurance that it won’t target Iran’s nuclear facilities. The official added that it is “really hard to tell” if Israel will use the anniversary of Hamas’ October 7 attacks to retaliate.

“We hope and expect to see some wisdom as well as strength, but as you guys know, no guarantees,” the official said when asked by CNN if Israel has assured the US that Iran’s nuclear sites are off the table. Biden has constantly maintained that Washington won’t support Israel in this move. “If I were in their shoes, I’d be thinking about other alternatives than striking oil fields,” Biden said at a press briefing Friday.

Biden insisted that Israel was “not going to make a decision immediately.” But the department is speculating on chances that Israel would conduct the attack on October 7, to mark the first year anniversary of Hamas’s surprise attack within the Jewish nation. “I think in some ways they would want to avoid the seventh, so in my estimation, if there is anything it would likely be before or after,” the State Department official explained.

During the Friday press briefing, Biden assured that the United States officials are in touch with their Israeli counterparts “12 hours a day.” “We’ll be discussing with the Israelis what they’re going to do,” the president said on Wednesday, adding that all G7 members agree Israel has “a right to respond, but they should respond in proportion.”

On the same day, Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said that there are “major efforts on both sides to keep lines of communication open and to make sure that perspectives are understood.” “There have been moments of surprise, I don’t think that’s a secret, over the course of the last couple of months,” he acknowledged.

“With respect to the Iranian attack on Israel, it is not just Israel that is thinking about its response options; it is also the United States,” Campbell explained while attending an event at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. “Our dominant message is, ‘let’s take great care in whatever we do with respect to Iran,’” he added.

With inputs from agencies.