DHS: US is in heightened threat situation as eight people with suspected ISIS ties arrested

NEW YORK CITY (NewsNation) — The United States continues to face an increased threat of foreign and domestic terrorism following the recent arrest of eight individuals from Tajikistan with suspected ties to the Islamic State group, the Department of Homeland Security confirmed to NewsNation.

The arrests took place in New York, Philadelphia and Los Angeles. The people, who entered the U.S. through the southern border, are being held for immigration violations, said the people, who were not authorized to speak by name about the ongoing investigation and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

The nature of their alleged ties to ISIS was not immediately clear, but the two individuals had been tracked for months by the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF). They were in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which made the arrests as part of its cooperation with the JTTF, pending proceedings to deport them from the country.

Crossing the border

The individuals, who are from Tajikistan, entered the country last spring and went through the U.S. government’s vetting process without any information surfacing that identified them as a potential terrorism risk, said one of the people familiar with the matter.

A joint statement from the FBI and DHS confirmed the arrests:

“In recent days, ICE agents have arrested several non-citizens at the direction of immigration authorities. The actions were conducted in close coordination with the FBI’s joint terrorism task force. … The FBI and DHS will continue to work around the clock with our partners to identify, investigate, and disrupt potential national security threats.”

Sources familiar with the operation said the individuals were vetted by law enforcement upon entry into the United States and there was no evidence at the time that they had any ties to ISIS.

However, law enforcement authorities later became concerned about their presence in the states and took action, officials said.

Increased threat to national security: Wray

The arrests came months after FBI Director Christopher Wray warned of an increased national security threat. In April, he testified before Congress that he feared human smuggling operations at the border were bringing people with possible ties to terrorist groups into the country.

“I can tell you that we know of a number of cases where someone who is a cause for concern, who did not have adequate biometric or other identifying information at the time of discovery, later information is found that clarifies why they are a cause for concern. And then it is the FBI and our partners who have to try to find the person and take every possible action to stop the threat that person poses,” Wray testified.

Wray also warned of a possible coordinated attack in the US following the ISIS-K terrorist attack on a Russian concert hall in March that killed 145 people.

“The FBI and DHS will continue to work with our partners around the clock to identify, investigate, and disrupt potential national security threats,” the authorities said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.