From The Center Square

By Bethany Blankley

“We strongly urge Jewish communities across the United States to remain vigilant and aware of potential threats during this period, particularly from October 2nd to October 12th.”

Approaching the one-year anniversary of the Oct. 7 terrorist attack against Israel, a group responsible for numerous rescue missions, including evacuating hundreds of Americans from Israel, has issued a warning about antisemitism-related threats in the U.S.

“We are deeply alarmed by the rising tide of open and brazen protests against Jews and Jewish communities over the past year – acts that have reached a scale unseen since World War II. These demonstrations have fostered an environment of heightened vulnerability for Jewish communities across the United States,” Project Dynamo, a group of former soldiers, military officers, national security officials, and intelligence officers, said in an advisory.

“History teaches us that terrorist organizations, including those that inspire groups like Hamas, often select significant dates and anniversaries as opportune moments for attacks, seeking to amplify their visibility and influence among their followers. The upcoming one-year anniversary of the October 7th attacks by Hamas, occurring between the Jewish High Holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, represents precisely the kind of symbolic timing that such groups are likely to exploit.

“We strongly urge Jewish communities across the United States to remain vigilant and aware of potential threats during this period, particularly from October 2nd to October 12th.”

The veteran-led, Tampa-based Project Dynamo helped rescue hundreds of Americans from Israel, working with Gov. Ron DeSantis. The state of Florida helped fund hundreds of flights for evacuees.

Within days of the attack, DeSantis declared a state of emergency and directed the Division of Emergency Management to execute a “Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan and other response, recovery, and mitigation plans necessary to cope with the emergency, including any logistical, rescue, or evacuation operations to bring Americans home who were stranded in Israel.”

Within a few weeks, Florida helped bring home nearly 700 Americans stranded in Israel, The Center Square reported.

“Unlike the governments of other countries, the Biden Administration has failed to launch any form of rescue or evacuation operations for Americans, including Floridians, who are stranded in the region, and has failed to provide information requested by the State of Florida about any plans for such operations,” DeSantis said at the time.

The Florida legislature also convened for a special legislative session to expand state sanctions on Iran.

In the absence of the federal government issuing a National Terrorism Advisory System Bulletin related to terrorist threats, Project Dynamo issued its own advisory.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has not issued a NTAS bulletin since May 2023. The NTAS was “designed to communicate information about terrorist threats by providing timely, detailed information to the American public. All Americans share responsibility for the nation’s security, and should always be aware of the heightened risk of terrorist attack in the United States and what they should do,” DHS says.

A congressional coalition led by U.S. Rep. Andy Biggs, R-AZ, called on DHS to issue one in July, asking why it hasn’t done so. When The Center Square asked DHS why it hadn’t issued one in over 15 months, DHS did not respond.

DHS has still not issued an NATS bulletin after President Joe Biden extended a national emergency due to terrorism threats.

Retired FAA special agent Brian Sullivan told The Center Square Americans need to be vigilant as the Oct. 7 attack anniversary approaches and during the Jewish holidays. “Despite the warnings coming from security experts, (like Project Dynamo),” he’s asked why the Biden-Harris administration hasn’t sent out an NATS bulletin “to encourage awareness and vigilance amongst the American public.”

Project Dynamo also points to the border crisis as a cause for heightened awareness saying that actions taken by international criminal organizations and criminal groups “involving illegal immigrants within our borders signify a troubling escalation of violence and a blatant disregard for U.S. laws and the American way of life.”

“Given the confirmed connections between Transnational Criminal Organizations – including cartels and gangs – and Islamic terrorism, coupled with the increasing hostility of both state and non-state actors towards the United States, this period of vigilance should extend beyond the general elections and well into the inauguration day in January 2025.

“There have already been arrests of suspected terrorist planning attacks on high profile locations. There are other non-specific threats and enough reporting to indicate a widespread likelihood that enemies of the Jewish people will attempt activities to gain notoriety on 7 October, inside the United States, and likely around the world.”

Project Dynamo lists actions the Jewish community and Americans can take to better protect themselves.

“Now is the time to stand together and ensure that our communities are well-prepared,” it says. “We encourage you to take these threats seriously and to act with the appropriate level of caution during this sensitive time.”