US intelligence assessment warns of Iranian attacks on US following Khamenei’s death

Iran and its proxies could target the US with attacks in response to the Saturday killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in Israeli and US strikes, according to a recent US intelligence assessment reviewed by Reuters.

The February 28 threat assessment produced by the Office of Intelligence and Analysis at the Department of Homeland Security said Iran and its proxies “probably” pose a threat of targeted attacks on the United States, although a large-scale physical attack is unlikely.

The report added that in the short term, the main concern was that Iran-aligned “hacktivists” would conduct low-level cyber attacks against US networks, such as website defacements and distributed denial-of-service attacks.

“Although a large-scale physical attack is unlikely, Iran and its proxies probably pose a persistent threat of targeted attacks in the Homeland, and will almost certainly escalate retaliatory actions — or calls to action – if reports of the Ayatollah’s death are confirmed,” the DHS report reviewed by Reuters says.

DHS does not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Iran on Sunday confirmed reports of Khamenei’s death in a strike on Saturday that was initially announced by Israel and US President Donald Trump.

The DHS assessment also said Iran would probably continue its attacks against US and allied targets in the Middle East and would almost certainly blame senior US government officials for any protests that begin because of Trump’s statement calling for regime change.