Violet incidents linked to the war in Iran now
Shots fired at the US consulate in Toronto, Canada. The Canadian authorities describe it as unacceptable
And improvised explosives are going off near America's consulate in Oslo, Norway
This took place on Sunday. Meanwhile, in New York, two men have been charged with terrorism
after throwing a homemade bomb at anti-Islam protesters over the weekend. And Europol, which is Europe's cross-border police force
is warning that the Middle East conflict will have immediate repercussions for European Union
security with an increased threat of terrorism, serious and organized crime, as well as violent
extremism and cyber attacks. Has Iran activated so-called sleeper cells in Western countries
to retaliate for the killing of the country's supreme leader? Concerns about that possibility
are growing. This week, a federal government alert was sent to law enforcement agencies in
the United States. According to the message, the US intercepted encrypted communications
believed to have originated in Iran. It's possible the transmissions could be intended
to activate or provide instructions to pre-position sleeper assets operating outside the originating
country. The alert does not link the threat to a specific location, but it instructs law
enforcement agencies to increase monitoring. So far, the Trump administration has offered
few details about the level of any potential threat from terrorists or spies working undercover
When asked whether Iran had activated such cells in the U.S., President Donald Trump did not
directly answer the question, but he said he's aware of their existence. Trump also blamed a
partial shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security, which he says is limiting the government
ability to respond. Well, we've been trying for a long time. We've been very much on top of it
One of the things we have to do is get the Democrats to stop the Democrat shutdown
Fears that Iran could use sleeper cells intensified earlier this month after a gunman
opened fire at a bar in Austin, Texas, killing three people. Investigators say there are indicators
of possible terrorism. Iran is saying that it will end the war on its terms
when it wants to. And, of course, one of the issues is how that war will be continued
Our report pointing out that there are many ways for war to be waged
And one of them, of course, is that very insidious way of hidden terror cells across the world
Let's bring in Greg Klein to talk more about this, Assistant Professor in Terrorism and Political Violence
at Leiden University. Hey, Greg, great to see you. Thanks for joining us here in France 24
We looking forward to your insights on this story because clearly what Iran might have in mind may be very far from the realms of conventional warfare Yes thank you for having me As some of the stories that they were just showing
Iran has networks throughout the world. We know they have some of their proxy terrorist groups in
the Middle East, like Hamas and Hezbollah, that are active there. But here in Europe
there's a greater concern about organized crime, the criminal networks, and individuals or sleeper
that may have been placed in some of these countries that are awaiting activation to target a lot of what Iranian kind of strategic political violence
and extremism and terrorism looks like in Europe and what it's looked like for several years
They like to target Jewish communities. They like to target government representatives
And oftentimes they use this through criminal organizations as essentially political violence for hire
You mentioned organized crime. What kind of flesh can you put on those bones
Are we thinking of things like the sale of drugs, the sale of illicit contraband
What are we talking about? It leverages organizations that participate in those kind of activities
but it's more so looking at essentially short transactions with these types of organized crime
that might specialize in violence, may have networks to individuals who are willing to commit acts of violence for monetary benefit
And so we see this somewhere there's been links between the Foxtrot Organized Crime Group in Sweden and Iran
We've seen this in the past with former Hells Angels members actually traveling to Iran and then back to Germany to recruit people to perpetrate attacks
In that case, in Germany, it was against a synagogue. But it's not so much about the drug trade per se, but it's that these are individuals who have networks and access to weapons, are willing to commit acts of violence
And these can be short transactions between the Iranian regime or its assets and potential perpetrators in Western countries
Greg, is this about people who are moved ideologically or is it purely about financial gain
There can be a little bit of both. I think the potential terrorist attack in Austin may be something linked to ideological gain
We have to keep in mind that the assassinated Ayatollah is a martyr for some of the cause and some ideological gains there
But there are also people doing this for financial benefit. There are people who are also doing this because they might have other political leanings or believe in extremism to an extent that they're willing to commit acts of violence
And it takes some of this network to kind of push them over the edge or incentivize them, sometimes through monetary gain
What we don't want is for this interview, excuse me, what we don't want, Greg, is for this interview to make people think when they see someone who may be Iranian or may look Iranian or somehow they feel is Iranian, they might be hidden agents or something
if that's not what it's about, because the way this works is that you wouldn't know
would you if you were living among someone who was planning this kind of thing No I think that part of the struggle in terms of security both from a government perspective and from society and being able to be resilient and not being suspicious of
our neighbors and people that we're living with. Most of these assets who would be placed here
are likely already working in Iranian embassies. They're usually not going to be members of the
Iranian community. In fact, oftentimes these networks or assets that are here, or those that
are hired through criminal organizations, are actually targeting Iranian dissidents. And they're going after journalists
And they're going after people that the Iranian regime sees as enemies and rivals
And that can be Iranians themselves, especially those who have led different protest movements
or have been very active dissidents either within Iran before they left or are now living abroad
How far does this network stretch, Craig? It would be hard to say, but it is an international network
Like I mentioned earlier, there's been examples out of Sweden and Germany
We know that the Dutch intelligence agency has released reports. There's a 2024 report that specifically identifies some perpetrators that were connected to organized crime that may have also been associated with a political assassination in Spain
And we saw U.S. intelligence agencies and security giving a warning that there may have been some encrypted messaging release that maybe is there to activate some potential sleeper cells outside of Iran
Looking back, just researching from 1979 to the present day, the number of plots and intelligence operations that may or may not have been attached to Iran
It does go across the world. I'm thinking back to 1992, the attack on the Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires, 29 people killed in that one
You know the list better than I do, I'm sure. But what I'm thinking is when Donald Trump says he's not concerned about any of this
is that kind of complacent of the U.S. president, do you think? I think it is complacent
I think this is particularly complacent given there's already been some violent events inside the United States
and targeting U.S. embassies abroad. We know that this is part of the Iranian strategic playbook
We know that they've been doing this, like you've said, since 1979. We know they do this in many countries around the world
It's not only their known terrorist networks and access of resistance in the Middle East region, but that they have these networks built in around the world
They have assets already placed and that they are willing to engage in this type of violence that is trying to undercut state security, try to build civil discord, try to turn neighbors against neighbors
that this is part of their strategic playbook in how they're going to operate, especially when
they are outgunned and potentially as this drags on to a longer and longer war
So this is a kind of subversive war of attrition something which is in the shadows something which is sort of something that many governments and many authorities won see coming when it happens It may well be too late The fact of the matter now though is that many places
and our own studios included, have armed police outside, just in case
France has stepped up its Operation Sentinel security, which has been in place since 2015, to a higher level
because of what is happening in Iran right now. And I imagine across the world this is being repeated
Absolutely. There is heightened security. We know that this is a potential threat
and we know that there's been more assets, both financial and kind of labor that's gone into this
to try to better securitize those who are particularly vulnerable to this, which
oftentimes is going to be Iranian dissidents, journalists, and potentially Jewish communities
or symbols throughout Europe. The challenge to this, though, is as a security agency
you are expected to essentially prevent and stop everything. And as Iran or other terrorists
they only have to be successful once to accomplish some of their goals. So it creates this dilemma of even within heightened security
it's almost impossible to be able to know everything and have everything there
And so we have to be more aware and dedicate more and more resources to understanding what this potential Iranian threat looks like
How great, Craig, is the cyber element of this, the possibility of cyber attacks
How great is this? Oh, Iran is very good in the cyber offense, very good at cyber attacks
I'm sure that there have been plenty of banks, financial institutions that have already faced an increase in attacks from Iran
We know, or at least there's reports, that Iran and China have been working together a little bit and sharing some information in the background of this conflict
And we also know that these countries are quite active in terms of their cyber capabilities and cyber offense
So what is your advice to ordinary people, apart from stay at home and don't talk to anybody and never go online? We can't do that with our lives, obviously. But what is the basic advice, sir
I think the basic advice is this is something to be aware of and know that this threat exists. But I think there's also something to say about societal resilience and that we cannot look suspiciously at one another
We can't look suspiciously at people that we think present a potential threat
And then we have to realize that this is going to be part of our kind of day-to-day reality right now, at least as long as this conflict is going on
And just be extra vigilant, especially in kind of the cyber domain
Be careful with passwords. Be careful with your activity online. We know that things are going to be targeted and vulnerable
Greg Klein, pleasure speaking to you, sir. Thank you very much indeed for that illuminating insight
into what might happen next in terms of Iran's plans to continue hostility
Greg Klein is Assistant Professor in Terrorism and Political Violence at Leiden University in The Hague
Thank you, sir, for joining us. Great to see you. Great to have me