The threat did not appear to be credible, several sources told CNN.
The broadcast was picked up by air traffic controllers in New York, the source said, adding that FBI offices there and in Washington are looking into the matter.
The threat, an administration officer tells CNN, was a strange remote incident and did not match any chat or known information. In fact, the threat had nothing to do with anything the U.S. is currently monitoring Iran, the official said.
While tensions with Iran have gradually escalated in the tight days of President Donald Trump’s term and concerns have recently emerged that Iran may try to use the anniversary of Soleimani’s death as a cause for targeting the U.S., many within the Pentagon believe the threat is currently declining.
Democratic Democrats did not appear to be unaware of the threat late Tuesday as supporters told CNN they learned about it just after the news broke. Supporters for Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York and Senate Intelligence Committee Democrat Mark Warner of Virginia said they were unaware of the threat before the CBS story surfaced.
Even if the threat was not considered plausible, it is a philosophical offense to carry out those threats over the frequency of a flight.
The FBI declined to comment, but said it “brings all threats of violence to public safety.” “
The Federal Aviation Administration did not directly address questions about the specific threat but said it is “working closely with federal law enforcement and national security partners on any reported security threats that may affect to improve aircraft safety. “
U.S. Capitol Police spokeswoman Eva Malecki told CNN, “The U.S. Capitol Police take all threats of violence to the U.S. Capitol and Congress very seriously, and it is working closely with the our Federal law enforcement partners. “
The anniversary of Soleimani’s death passed without violence
The news of the air traffic control warning came two days after the anniversary of the Soleimani massacre in the U.S. drone strike, a day that worried some U.S. officials that Iran would mark revenge but passed without violence.
The U.S. has increased its military presence in the Middle East in a demonstration of a ban involving nuclear-capable B-52 bombers to the region, announcing the movement of a nearby nuclear submarine Persian Gulf and, on Sunday, Trump’s decision to extend USS aircraft carrier Nimitz resides in the area.
On Thursday, Iran’s Foreign Minister Javad Zarif accused the U.S. of creating a war case. But on Friday, Soleimani’s agent marked his death by promising that “those involved in this murder and crime will not be safe on the ground. It sure is. ”
Speaking to a crowd gathered to watch the deadly anniversary, Gen. Esmail Ghaani called Trump a “stupid man” led by Israel and Saudi Arabia, and warned that “even from the inside of your own house, it is possible for revenge to emerge. for your crime. “
But Iran seemed to opt for a cautiously calibrated response instead, announcing it had increased uranium enrichment to levels seen before Trump’s 2015 nuclear deal reversed and captured a flagged tanker South Korea in the Gulf. At the same time, Iran’s agents were signaling a devaluation.
The head of Iraq’s Shiite militia group, Kataib Hezbollah, issued a statement saying the group would not attempt to “enter” the US embassy in Baghdad, which was attacked after the 2019 massacre. Soleimani, or an attempt to overthrow the current Iraqi Iraq. government, even as a large crowd gathered in Baghdad’s Tahrir Square on Sunday to call for U.S. forces to leave the country.
While there are still concerns that the U.S. or Iran may err, there is a widespread perception among Iranian-looking diplomats that Tehran has every incentive to avoid a stimulus that could provoke and provoke conflict. out of the inability of President Joe Biden to pursue plans to return to the nuclear deal and finally the abolition of sanctions that Trump would use to boost Iran’s economy.
“I think Ioran knows in a few days that the game will start again and if they do something silly now it won’t help their situation,” one diplomat told CNN.