A fourth Iranian on the terror watch list was caught trying to enter the United States through the southern border over the weekend as the war between Israel and the Tehran-backed terror group Hamas rages on.
The man in his 40s is the fourth Iranian detained by customs officials since early October.
The surge in crossings of people on the terror watch list comes in the days before and after the horrific attack on Israel by Hamas terrorists, an event many refer to as Israel’s 9/11 attack.
Iranians who enter illegally are considered “aliens of special interest” as the State Department considers the Islamic Republic a hostile nation that poses a threat to national security.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said last week that Iran was “largely complicit” in recent unprecedented attacks on Israel because of the country’s support of terrorist organizations worldwide.
Also this month, two men from Lebanon, home of the terror group Hezbollah, were arrested at Eagle Pass, in addition to an Egyptian, while another 19 Iranians and 17 Syrians were arrested in another area.
Iranians who enter illegally are considered “aliens of special interest” because the U.S. State Department considers the Islamic Republic a hostile nation
US Border Patrol agents help migrants trapped by the currents of the Rio Grande onto an airboat
These latest fears come after Hamas’s unprecedented attack on Israel last week. The National Security Council described Iran as “largely complicit” in the violence
The Iranian man most recently taken into custody was mingling with a group of Venezuelan migrants when he was located around 3 a.m. on Sunday. He was arrested without incident, a Fox News report said, shortly after crossing the border.
Hezbollah has pledged allegiance to Hamas as part of Israel’s counteroffensive against the terrorist group.
Last week, the Hamas leader called for a “global day of jihad” on Friday – just days after he carried out brutal terror attacks on Israeli civilians last Saturday.
FBI Director Christopher Wray and other FBI officials said in a rare telephone briefing for reporters on Sunday that those concerns should not be ignored, asserting that threats in the U.S. have increased since the Hamas invasion.
“The threat continues and, in fact, the threat picture continues to evolve,” Wray said.
“Here in the United States, we cannot ignore the possibility that Hamas or other foreign terrorist organizations could exploit the conflict to incite their followers to carry out attacks on our own soil.”
Iran’s alleged connection to the attacks has been criticized by Republicans who claim the Middle Eastern country is funding Hamas terrorism in Israel – particularly through the $6 billion the Biden administration gave to Iran for the release of the has paid five hostages who were held in Tehran last month.
The Islamic Republic of Iran and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah provide funding, training and weapons to the Sunni Islamist political and military organization Hamas.
The United States and several other Western nations have designated both Hezbollah and Hamas as terrorist organizations.
Hamas is the de facto government of the Palestinian enclave in the Gaza Strip, but also has a presence in the West Bank.
Border officials are on high alert, closely monitoring whether people on the terror watch list – or from enemy countries – are entering the country illegally following the attack on Israel.
There are no confirmed reports that Iran or any other country helped Hamas terrorists plan their barbaric attack on Israel. The Biden administration has repeated repeatedly that it has found no evidence of links between Iran and the attack on the Jewish state.
In September, the Department of Homeland Security said in a report that there were a growing number of “special interest aliens” attempting to enter the United States, while warning that “terrorists and criminal actors are taking advantage of increased influxes and the increasingly complex security environment.” could to invade ‘The United States.’
“Terrorist-linked individuals are interested in using established travel routes and permissive environments to facilitate access to the United States,” the report continued.
Fox News reporter Bill Melugin obtained the data from Border Patrol sources
A surge in arrivals has prompted New York to say it is full and is telling migrants to go elsewhere. This file photo shows people waiting for beds outside the Roosevelt Hotel
A special interest alien is a person who could pose a threat to U.S. national security.
According to the Department of Homeland Security, not all SIAs are terrorists, it’s just a designation.
Following news of the arrests, Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy said wrote on X: “This is unacceptable and downright dangerous.” “Protecting the homeland without apology: This is my highest national security priority.”
A Customs and Border Protection source told Breitbart that while most SIAs are not terrorists, the high number of border crossings makes it difficult for officials to determine who is legitimately seeking asylum and who poses a threat.
“It is understandable that people are fleeing countries where there is terrorism, but with so many migrants crossing the border from all over the world every day, it is difficult to distinguish between those who are fleeing the conditions and those who may be active participate in these activities,” the source said.
In total, more than 70,000 migrants from high-concern countries were apprehended, according to leaked Customs and Border Protection data.
These include 6,386 nationals from Afghanistan, where the Taliban took power in 2021 after a 20-year war, 659 people from Iran, which supports the terrorist group Hamas, and from Syria, which is considered a state sponsor of terrorism.
However, the majority comes from NATO ally Turkey and the West African country Mauritania, which is fighting extremist violence.
The numbers were obtained from Fox News reporter Bill Melugin.
“Border Patrol sources tell me they have extreme concerns about who is entering the country because they have little to no ability to screen people from these special interest countries,” he said on X, the social media platform, earlier was known as Twitter.
“I was told that unless they have previously committed a crime in the US or are on some sort of federal watch list, there is no way to find out who they are, as most of their home countries do not have any data/records with the “So there is nothing to link a name to a name when BP agents examine fingerprints.”
“Foreigners of special interest” are defined by their country of origin and not by accusations of intelligence about specific individuals.
The term is used by federal authorities to refer to individuals who come from countries whose conditions encourage or encourage terrorism or pose a potential threat to national security.
The result puzzles the US authorities. Countries home to violent terrorist movements are also countries with populations desperate to flee to safety.
Those arriving at the U.S. border included 13,624 people from the Central Asian Uzbekistan, which borders Afghanistan and has provided foreign fighters for other militant groups.
Last week, President Joe Biden defended his administration’s decision to override 26 federal laws in South Texas to allow construction of about 20 miles of additional border wall, saying he had no choice but to use the funds from the Trump administration. Era for the barrier to use to stop illegal migration from Mexico.
When asked if he believed such walls would work, he replied flatly: “No.”
What is a Special Interest Alien?
According to the Department of Homeland Security, a special interest alien is defined as:
“Generally, an SIA is a non-U.S. person who, based on an analysis of travel behavior, potentially poses a national security risk to the United States or its interests.” Often such individuals or groups take advantage of travel patterns that are known or It is estimated that they may have a connection to terrorism. The DHS analysis includes an examination of travel patterns, origins and/or travel segments linked to current assessments of domestic and international threat environments.”
In 2023, over 61,000 special interest aliens were arrested by border officials.
The new building was announced in June, but the funds were approved in 2019, before the Democratic president took office.
Biden said he tried to get lawmakers to redirect the money, but Congress refused, and the law requires the funds to be used as approved and construction to be completed in 2023.
“The money was used for the border wall,” Biden said. “I can’t stop that.”
The decision comes as the Biden administration struggles to cope with rising numbers of migrants at the border and a surge in larger U.S. states. Democratic leaders in New York, Chicago and Washington are asking for federal help to deal with the growing number of migrants in their cities.
Government officials announced Thursday they would resume deporting migrants to Venezuela in an effort to slow arrivals.
Republicans, for their part, blast the president as ineffective on border policy, and some say they won’t fund further efforts in Ukraine without significantly increasing funding for border security.