What are sleeper cells and why are the FBI on alert for them after Trump’s strikes on Iran?

The United States has ramped up its monitoring of Iranian sleeper cells as President Donald Trump’s strikes on three major Iranian nuclear sites decisively propelled the U.S. into Israel’s war.

Following Saturday’s strikes, which Trump claimed “totally obliterated” Iran’s nuclear sites of Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan, both White House and FBI officials have been on high alert for Iranian sleeper cells.

Sleeper cells comprised of spies or terrorists hiding out in the U.S. or Western countries, remain inactive, often living quiet and unassuming lives working regular jobs until they are ordered to act on a mission. (Think Philip and Elizabeth Jennings, the fictional Cold War-era KGB spies who pose as the typical American couple with kids in suburban DC in FX’s series The Americans.)

According to reports, Iran may now try to activate these covert spies after the U.S. joined Israel’s strikes against Iran.

Even before Trump ordered U.S. involvement in the strikes, FBI Director Kash Patel increased efforts to surveil potential sleeper agents linked to Hezbollah – a U.S.-designated terror organization backed by Iran, sources told CBS News.

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The increased surveillance started earlier this month, after Israel’s Operation Rising Lion offensive began, according to the report.

Both current and former administrations have worried about the threat of Iranian operatives, especially after Trump ordered Iranian General Qasem Soleimani to be assassinated in January 2020.

In the wake of his killing, the FBI, Department of Homeland Security, and other agencies ramped up their resources to counter potential threats. Since then, prosecutors have also charged several U.S.-based individuals with plotting to kill both Trump and his national security adviser John Bolton.

A recent U.S. Department of Homeland Security threat assessment found that the intelligence community expects Iran to remain the primary source of terrorism and continue to advance plots against the U.S., according to NewsNation.

“As the conflict in the Middle East escalates and Iran is being targeted, the regime thinks to itself, ‘OK, we are on our last throes, and therefore we will go out with a bang, quite literally,’” Barak Seener, a senior fellow at the Henry Jackson Society, told NewsNation before the U.S. joined the strikes.

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“Its calculus will be very different if its survivability is threatened. Intelligence Services in the U.S. are working overtime to contend and mitigate risks and threats that can emerge on its domestic soil. The more protracted this conflict goes on, the heightened risk for both U.S. forces and assets in the Middle East, but also to U.S. security domestically,” Seener added.

United States Central Command officials have also said it is likely that the FBI is currently monitoring potential threats.

While the true extent of the damage from Saturday’s strikes remains unclear, Iran has described the act as “unforgivable” and vowed retaliation.

In wake of the attacks, Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi accused Washington of having “betrayed” negotiations over a nuclear deal.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, however, cautioned Iran against any retaliation, echoing Trump’s comments the night of the strikes, when the president posted: "There will either be peace or there will be tragedy for Iran far greater than we have witnessed over the last eight days."

Rubio said of Iran on Fox Business’ "Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo" that any such action against the U.S. or its interests would be "the worst mistake they've ever made."