Homeland security secretary confirms Iranian threat in US..

Napolitano: Iranian threat could reach U.S. soil • Police say there are no specific threats in New York City • U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer calls on State Department to increase scrutiny of U.N. mission in New York to uncover possible plots.

The Associated Press

U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano. | Photo credit: AP

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The U.S. is concerned about increasing threats from Iran, U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano told a House panel on Wednesday.

“It’s a situation that bears watching,” Napolitano said, days after suspected Iranian terrorists launched attacks on Jewish and Israeli targets in Thailand, India and Georgia. The U.S., Napolitano said, is upping its communication with Jewish groups on U.S. soil and hoping to address the organizations’s concerns.

According to a report by Fox News, the FBI will brief Washington-area Jewish groups next week about how to identify and report threats and suspicious activities.

The Fox News report said the meeting had actually been planned for several weeks, but in light of the recent attacks, the focus was now being recalibrated due to threats from both Hezbollah and Iran.

Peter T. King, the chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, told the House panel that in the past decade, “the threat of Hezbollah seems to have emerged more than” ever.

Fox News also reports that the Los Angeles Police Department had increased its outreach to Jewish organizations and institutions following this week’s terror attacks.

Meanwhile, New York City police have heightened security around Israeli government offices and synagogues, according a police spokesman. Paul Browne said Wednesday there were no specific threats, but said the security measures were put in place as a precaution amid mounting tension with Iran over its nuclear advances.

Browne said the NYPD regularly adjusts its counterterrorism strategies based on events overseas.

U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer also called on the State Department to increase scrutiny of Iran’s U.N. mission in New York to uncover possible plots.