NYC Readies More Cops as Security Tightened Across U.S. on Iran

(Bloomberg) -- Police with assault rifles and even bag checks could become more common as officials from New York to California ramp up security in the face of Iranian threats of revenge for the U.S. killing of one of their most powerful generals.

“You will see a lot of officers deployed with ability to move very quickly,” New York Mayor Bill de Blasio told reporters at a news conference. “There’s no way to predict what happens next.”

Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei vowed “severe retaliation” after a U.S. airstrike near Baghdad airport killed Qassem Soleimani, the Iranian general who led the Revolutionary Guards’ Quds force.

De Blasio said New York police armed with assault rifles would be deployed to potential targets and checks of bags and backpacks could be instituted.

“We know Iran and its proxies have long been interested in some of the internationally known places here in New York City,” he said.

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo said Friday he has deployed the National Guard to New York City airports and boosted security and patrols at other important sites. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said it had “significantly heightened police and security presence” at the World Trade Center as well as the area’s airports, tunnels, bridges and it’s transit system.

In Washington, Mayor Muriel Bowser said in a statement that there were no immediate threats to the district, but the city was in contact with federal partners to monitor the developing situation “both at home and abroad.”

Daniel Stessel, a spokesman for the district’s transit agency, said “it is safe to say that Metro riders may notice an increased police presence on the system and additional K9 patrols in stations,” though there is no known specific or credible threat.

Amtrak, the passenger rail network, “remains vigilant and continues to maintain a strong security posture,” said spokeswoman Kimberly Woods.

Similarly the Los Angeles Police Department said they were monitoring the situation and staying in touch with federal law enforcement.

Department of Homeland Security Acting Secretary Chad F. Wolf said in a statement that there were no current “specific, credible” threats to the U.S.

But, he said, the department “stands ready to confront and combat any and all threats.”

Kaleigh Thomas, a research associate for the Middle East Security Program at the Center for a New American Security, said the U.S. is likely beefing up security at targets such as military bases, government buildings, and city centers, but most of what is occurring is behind the scenes.

“They are doing a lot but I think it will be less in the public eye,” Thomas said in an interview.

John Cohen, former Homeland Security acting undersecretary for intelligence and analysis, said law enforcement in large urban areas will likely consider increasing security around synagogues and U.S. and Israeli government buildings.

Cohen, who is now a professor at Georgetown University, said he is worried that coordination across the U.S. national security aparatus is not as robust as it was in 2011 when similar threats from Iran surfaced.

A cyber attack against the U.S. may be more likely than a physical terrorist attack, said Jamil Jaffer, founder and executive director of the National Security Institute at George Mason University and a former aide to President George W. Bush.

At the same time, homeland security experts said they considered a terrorist attack at the hands of Iran unlikely.

“Iran does not have a history of ties to extremist groups here or shown any past capability,” said Anthony Cordesman, an expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies who served in at U.S. Embassy in Iran in the early 1970s. “I think the threat domestically, quite frankly, is at this point in time is quite minimal.”

--With assistance from Chris Strohm.

To contact the reporters on this story: Ari Natter in Washington at anatter5@bloomberg.net;Michaela Ross in New York at mross113@bloomberg.net;Henry Goldman in New York at hgoldman@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Jon Morgan at jmorgan97@bloomberg.net, Elizabeth Wasserman

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