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By Andrew Stanton and Gabe Whisnant
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Federal authorities warned California law enforcement agencies that Iran had aspired to carry out a surprise drone attack against targets in the state in retaliation for U.S. military strikes, according to an FBI bulletin reviewed by ABC News.
A spokesperson for California Governor Gavin Newsom told Newsweek on Wednesday: "The Governor’s Office of Emergency Services is actively working with state, local and federal security officials to protect our communities."
A spokesperson for California’s Office of Emergency Services told Newsweek that its Homeland Security team is “in regular coordination with federal, state and local partners, sharing information on potential threats as part of ongoing security efforts.”
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“While we can’t discuss sensitive details, Californians should know that this kind of coordination happens every day to keep people safe,” the spokesperson said. “California is prepared to protect its communities, and we’ll continue working closely with our federal partners, including the FBI, who is best positioned to speak to any specific intelligence.”
Newsom also addressed the report on X, writing, "I am in constant coordination with security and intelligence officials, including at @Cal_OES, to monitor potential threats to California — including those tied to the conflict in the Middle East. While we are not aware of any imminent threats at this time, we remain prepared for any emergency in our state."
Later Wednesday, President Donald Trump told reporters that the bulletin was "being investigated." He added, "You have a lot of things happening and all we can do is take them as they come."
An FBI spokesperson declined comment when reached by Newsweek on Wednesday.
What to Know
The alert said the FBI obtained information indicating that, as of early February, Iran allegedly considered launching unmanned aerial vehicles from an unidentified vessel off the U.S. coast, specifically targeting California. The bulletin emphasized that authorities had no additional details on the timing, targets, methods or perpetrators and described the information as uncorroborated, ABC News reported.
The memo provided few details about what such an attack might look like, ABC News reported.
“We recently acquired information that as of early February 2026, Iran allegedly aspired to conduct a surprise attack using unmanned aerial vehicles from an unidentified vessel off the coast of the United State Homeland, specifically against unspecified targets in California, in the event that the US conducted strikes against Iran,” the alert stated. “We have no additional information on the timing, method, target, or perpetrators of this alleged attack.
Meanwhile, CBS News' Jennifer Jacobs reported that multiple U.S. and state law enforcement and intelligence officials told the network there is no credible intelligence underpinning an FBI bulletin that raised the unverified possibility Iran could retaliate for U.S. attacks by launching drones toward the West Coast.
“This is not actionable,” a California‑based federal law enforcement official told CBS News.
Another California law enforcement official said the alert was intended only to ensure agencies were aware of the information.
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“All this means is we got this information and we want to get it out to law enforcement executives to make sure they’re up to speed on it,” the official said. “There is absolutely nothing more to it.”
The bulletin distributed by the FBI’s Los Angeles field office was based on an apparent tip that surfaced before the current conflict with Iran, officials told CBS News.
On February 28, the U.S. and Israel launched strikes against Iran after failed talks between the U.S. and Iran to address Iran’s nuclear program, sending the Middle East into a conflict that has widened. U.S. and Israeli strikes have killed more than 1,300 people in Iran, which has launched retaliatory strikes on Israel and Gulf Arab allies hosting U.S. forces, including bases in Kuwait, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.
U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters he is not concerned about whether Iran could retaliate via strikes on U.S. soil, Reuters reported.
Could Iran Attack the United States?
The widening conflict has fueled concerns that Iran, which the U.S. classified as a state sponsor of terrorism in 1984, could strike the U.S.
Law enforcement agencies earlier received a federal alert that the government intercepted an encrypted transmission believed to have originated in Iran that may serve as an “operational trigger” for “sleeper assets” outside the country, according to ABC News. The advisory reportedly told agencies to increase monitoring of suspicious radio-frequency activity and emphasized situational awareness while underscoring that authorities did not identify a specific operational threat or target.
“While the exact contents of these transmissions cannot currently be determined,” the alert said, “sudden appearance of a new station with international rebroadcast characteristics warrants heightened situational awareness,” ABC News reported.
A Council on Foreign Relations report published on March 5 by fellow Bruce Hoffman found that “sleeper agents, lone actors inspired and motivated by Iran, cyberattacks on U.S. infrastructure, and physical attacks on critical infrastructure” as the war continues.
“Iran and its terrorist client, Hezbollah, have long had sophisticated cyber capabilities. In May 2014, Iran’s 'charming kitten' cyber operation targeted a variety of U.S. institutions and individuals, and its capabilities have likely improved since then,” Hoffman wrote.
He warned that the U.S. “is in an unprecedented dangerous situation when the Iranian regime’s desire to retaliate for the war and the killing of Khamenei could surface now or at any time in the future” and that the Department of Homeland Security should allocate resources to address counterterrorism efforts.
A Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) report published by fellow Benjamin Jensen on February 26, before the attack, said that Iran could use cyberattacks to retaliate.
“The regime has a documented history of substituting cyber operations for its traditional approach to proxy warfare in terrorism,” Jensen wrote.
He wrote that Iran has a “long history of using terrorism, proxies, and assassinations to advance state interests” and could “alternatively explore horizontal escalation options and use covert operatives, proxy forces, and terrorist networks to target U.S. interests outside the region.”
Iran War: The Latest
The conflict has killed more than 1,800 people, including at least seven U.S. troops.
On Wednesday, The New York Times reported that an internal U.S. military investigation determined that the United States was responsible for a Tomahawk missile strike that hit an elementary school in Iran, killing about 170 students and wounding roughly 100 people, citing U.S. officials and others familiar with the preliminary findings*.*
Meanwhile, the International Energy Agency announced that it will release 400 million barrels of oil from strategic reserves amid concerns about rising oil prices across the globe.
U.S. President Donald Trump offered mixed signals on the war’s duration, saying it could end soon while also insisting that Iran must offer “unconditional surrender.”
Why Did the U.S. and Israel Attack Iran?
Trump said the strikes were intended to crush Iran’s nuclear and missile capabilities and urged Iranians to overthrow their leaders once the operation ends, telling them to “take over your government.”
In a speech announcing the attack on Saturday, Trump said: "Our objective is to defend the American people by eliminating imminent threats from the Iranian regime...Its menacing activities directly endanger the United States, our troops, our bases overseas and our allies throughout the world.
“It has always been the policy of the United States, in particular my administration, that this terrorist regime can never have a nuclear weapon. I'll say it again: They can never have a nuclear weapon. That is why, in Operation Midnight Hammer last June, we obliterated the regime's nuclear program at Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan.”
He warned Iranians that “it’s very dangerous outside. Bombs will be dropping everywhere,” but once the operation is finished, “take over your government. It will be yours to take.”
Iran has repeatedly denied pursuing a nuclear weapon and had engaged in diplomatic talks with the U.S. only days earlier to prevent military conflict.
Trump previously called for regime change in Iran. The U.S. launched strikes against Iran in June 2025, damaging three major nuclear facilities: Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan. The president also referenced Iran’s recent bloody crackdown on protesters in the country in his speech: “Iran is the world's number one state sponsor of terror and just recently killed tens of thousands of its own citizens on the street as they protested.”
The Defense Intelligence Agency's 2025 Worldwide Threat Assessment report concluded that Iran had not been producing a nuclear weapon but has “undertaken activities in recent years that better position it to produce them, if it chooses to do so.”
Update 3/11/26, 4:41 p.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.
Update 3/11/26, 6:31 p.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information and remarks.
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