Your trusted source

Law enforcement agencies in several major US cities have issued alerts advising residents to be vigilant in the wake of the US strike against Iran’s top general as officials said they were stepping up security efforts at sensitive locations, The Guardian reports. 

Chad Wolf, acting secretary of the US Department of Homeland Security, said his agency was working with law enforcement officials and others across the country and was ready to respond to any threats, though none had yet been detected.

In New York City, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced he was consulting with city officials about steps the the police department will take to protect key locations “from any attempt by Iran or its terrorist allies to retaliate against America”.

The city will be “vigilant against this threat for a long time to come”, De Blasio tweeted

The New York police commissioner, Dermot Shea, added: “NYPD continues to closely monitor the events in Iran & across the region for any further developments. While there are no specific / credible threats to #NYC, we’ve deployed additional resources to key locations. As always, if you see something, say something.”

Los Angeles, home to a sizable US-Iranian population, also issued an alert hours after the US strike on Qassem Suleimani, asking “every Angeleno to say something if you see something”.

The warnings came as the US state department urged its US citizens to leave Iraq “immediately”.

The US embassy in Baghdad, which was attacked by Iran-backed militiamen and other protesters earlier this week, is closed and all consular services have been suspended.