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Local and federal authorities across the country are likely preparing for potential threats during Fourth of July celebrations next weekend amid tensions between the United States and the Middle East, according to a former U.S. Secret Service agent.
Tensions escalated on June 22, when the U.S. Military bombed three key nuclear sites in Iran, according to Trump administration officials.
“Due to the Iran conflict, the Department of Homeland Security has a National Threat Advisory System, and as of June 22, we are at a heightened threat environment,” Michael Verden, founder and CEO of security firm The Lake Forest Group, told Fox News Digital. “That level will stay in place until September 22, and it could be extended based on the conflict in Iran.”
Verden, a former USSS agent and law enforcement officer, added that certain 4th of July activities and travel will see increased security and precautionary measures “because of this heightened threat environment.”
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DHS said in a June 22 bulletin that “Iran also has a long-standing commitment to target US Government officials it views as responsible for the death of an Iranian military commander killed in January 2020.”
“The likelihood of violent extremists in the Homeland independently mobilizing to violence in response to the conflict would likely increase if Iranian leadership issued a religious ruling calling for retaliatory violence against targets in the Homeland,” DHS said. “Multiple recent Homeland terrorist attacks have been motivated by anti-Semitic or anti-Israel sentiment, and the ongoing Israel-Iran conflict could contribute to US-based individuals plotting additional attacks.”
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Verden recalled a mass shooting that took place on the Fourth of July in Highland Park, Illinois, in 2022 that left seven people killed, including an 8-year-old boy. While the shooter’s motive has not been described as an act of terrorism, Verden said that shooting three years ago brought more attention to the possibility of bad actors targeting “open-air events.”
In more urban settings, bad actors could also target subterranean spaces, such as subways or threats “from the water,” he said.
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Public and private events will need to coordinate with local law enforcement for the holiday, according to Verden.
Federal intelligence officials, meanwhile, will try to proactively identify and stop any emerging threats “associated with the homeland, and a 4th of July event is definitely associated with the homeland,” Verden said.
“I do believe that federal agencies will have more of an emphasis on identifying some type of emerging threat.”
The former USSS agent also said law enforcement will put a heavy emphasis on “access control,” which includes everything from verifying credentials at admission for an event, checking bags, checking parked vehicles for explosives, looking out for suspicious activity and so on.
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“If there was some type of suspicious activity, do you have tactical units to respond to … a group of people that seems suspicious, or other assets such as explosives? They call it explosives ordinance disposal, which is EOD. So, if someone found a backpack that was unattended, do you have canine assets, or do you have EOD teams to respond to that?” Verden explained.
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Law enforcement will also be looking to cover high vantage points. Verden noted that the Highland Park shooter and the gunman who shot at then-candidate Donald Trump at his rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, last year were both positioned on rooftops.
Verden said Fourth of July event attendees should familiarize themselves with venue layouts, and read website descriptions of events before attending. Revelers should also have a plan in the event of an emergency situation, such as coming up with a meeting location, especially if cell services crashes and there is no way to get in contact with loved ones.
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Law enforcement officials should take a “three-step approach” in the event of an emergency, according to Verden. First, assess the event space and come up with a security plan; have a pre-determined incident commander in the case of an emergency; and adequately train first-responders and other officials prior to an event.
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“There’s always a little bit of a heightened risk level when it comes to these patriotic [events]. … This is when the Declaration of Independence was ratified on this date. So, there’s always that concern of our adversaries. This would be an opportune time for them to do some type of an attack,” he said.
A recent assessment released last week by the Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS) found that Israel’s Operation Rising Lion, followed by U.S. bunker-busting strikes, “effectively destroyed Iran’s centrifuge enrichment program.” But authors David Albright and Spencer Faragasso cautioned that “residuals such as stocks of 60%, 20%, and 3-5% enriched uranium and centrifuges manufactured but not yet installed … pose a threat as they can be used in the future to produce weapon-grade uranium.”
According to the ISIS report, “extensive damage” was confirmed at nearly all major Iranian nuclear and missile facilities, including the destruction of uranium metal conversion plants, fuel fabrication centers, and the IR-40 Arak heavy water reactor. The report noted that the Israeli and U.S. strikes “rendered the Fordow site inoperable,” citing high-resolution satellite imagery of deep bunker penetrations.
The bunker strikes have prompted conversations about Iranian retaliation against the United States.
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