Carolyn Leavitt has criticized an ABC News report warning of a possible Iranian drone attack in California, calling it “reckless” and “completely false.”
A White House spokeswoman called the report that the FBI quietly warned the country’s law enforcement that Iran might retaliate for U.S. airstrikes a “fake story” in a letter to X Thursday — and demanded an immediate retraction.
“There was no credible threat against the American homeland from Iran,” she wrote, claiming that the network was raising “alarm” based on unverified information.
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The report comes from an alert the FBI issued in early February warning that Iran was planning a “surprise attack using unmanned aerial objects” from a ship off the coast “in the event the United States launches strikes against Iran.”
The alert was sent to police departments throughout the area, but it did not say where specifically they could be targeted. The FBI declined to comment when contacted by The Washington Post.
Gov. Gavin Newsom addressed the FBI alert during a press conference on Wednesday, acknowledging a “serious” threat.
“The drone issues were at the forefront of our priorities,” he said. “We were aware of this information, and we were working collaboratively with them.” [State Operations Center]”.
California has the highest concentration of Iranian dissidents in the United States — up to 500,000 — but it is not clear whether that is why the state was targeted.