- cross-posted to:
- [email protected]
- cross-posted to:
- [email protected]
The FBI warned police departments in California in recent days that Iran could retaliate for American attacks by launching drones at the West Coast, according to an alert reviewed by ABC News.
“We recently acquired information that as of early February 2026, Iran allegedly aspired to conduct a surprise attack using unmanned aerial vehicles from an unidentified vessel off the coast of the United State Homeland, specifically against unspecified targets in California, in the event that the US conducted strikes against Iran,” according to the alert distributed at the end of February. “We have no additional information on the timing, method, target, or perpetrators of this alleged attack.”
The warning came just as the Trump administration launched its ongoing assault against the Islamic Republic. Iran has been retaliating with drone strikes against targets throughout the Mideast.
Iran does not need to test California’s air defenses. An easier way to hurt the USA would be to bomb US assets in the middle east or closing the Strait of Hormuz. Those are much easier to do for much bigger, immediate benefit.
The cost benefit analysis of striking California doesn’t make sense. The War on Terror showed how the USA would respond to a strike on US soil. The last thing Iran wants is for the citizens of the USA to be galvanized to increase military action in the middle east. Iran would have to be as stupid as the USA to overextend like that and they have not shown any signs of being that foolish.
And yes, beyond all of this, I still think it is not possible for Iran to drone strike California anytime soon. The idea of secret Iranian sleeper cells in the US is absurd, on the level of secret Japanese sleeper cells during WW2.