Federal Officials Warn of ‘Lone Wolf’ Terror Threats on July 4, NY Governor Says

‘Lone wolf actors remain the greatest potential threat including during the upcoming July 4th holiday,’ Gov. Kathy Hochul said.

An FBI agent walks toward a crime scene in Gilroy, Calif., on July 29, 2019. Mario Tama/Getty Images

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has confirmed that federal officials informed her about a possible terrorist threat ahead of the July 4 Independence Day holiday.

“Our federal partners reiterated yesterday that lone wolf actors remain the greatest potential threat including during the upcoming July 4th holiday,” Hochul said in a July 2 statement, without providing the names of the federal agencies or any specific details about potential plots.

The governor said state law enforcement officials are “in an increased alert posture following the recent conflict in the Middle East” and that under her direction, “State Police will have an increased presence at large events throughout the state” during the holiday.

“And we will be closely coordinating with local and federal law enforcement partners to ensure the safety of all involved,” she said.

“National Guard personnel also remain deployed at major transportation hubs, as well as at key bridges and tunnels within New York City.

“We are also actively monitoring social media activity and continue to be on high alert for any cyberthreats.”

While Hochul did not elaborate, ABC News and other outlets, citing an internal bulletin released by the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), reported that those agencies believe there is an elevated threat in New York and California during Independence Day.

The Epoch Times contacted both DHS and the FBI for comment on Thursday but did not receive a response by publication time.

Earlier this week, the FBI and other agencies sent a warning that Iranian regime-linked groups could launch cyberattacks on U.S. infrastructure, although they did not issue any public warnings about terrorist attacks linked to Iran.

“Defense Industrial Base companies, particularly those possessing holdings or relationships with Israeli research and defense firms, are at increased risk,” the agencies stated in the warning, issued by the FBI, the National Security Agency, the Department of Defense Cyber Crime Center, and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.

That comes roughly two weeks after the United States bombed multiple Iranian nuclear enrichment sites following days of back-and-forth strikes carried out by both Iran and Israel. Iran later confirmed that several of its top military officials and scientists were killed in the Israeli strikes.

For the past year and a half, the FBI has issued warnings about terrorist attacks inside the United States inspired by the Israel–Hamas conflict, which was sparked by a Hamas terrorist attack on Oct. 7, 2023, that left more than 1,200 civilians dead.

About a month ago, the FBI warned that there is an elevated terrorism threat to the Jewish community in the United States in light of a shooting that left two Israeli Embassy staffers dead in Washington and an arson attack in Boulder, Colorado, in recent months. An 82-year-old woman who was injured during the Boulder firebombing incident, which occurred in June, died on Monday, prosecutors said.

Mohamed Soliman, the suspect in the Boulder attack, allegedly yelled “Free Palestine” during the incident, federal officials said.

In the Washington attack, suspect Elias Rodriguez yelled, “Free, free Palestine,” which was captured on video, authorities also said.

“We are investigating this incident as an act of terror, and targeted violence. All of the necessary assets will be dedicated to this investigation,” FBI Director Dan Bongino said in a June statement on social media platform X, referring to the Boulder attack.

In May, Bongino said the Israeli Embassy shooting was being investigated under similar pretexts.