FBI Director Christopher Wray recently appeared before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (SSCI), where he issued a warning about potential terrorism threats at the border. Shortly after this, a self-proclaimed Hezbollah terrorist was apprehended near El Paso, Texas, as reported by The Center for Immigration Studies (CIS).

In his testimony to the SSCI, Wray stated that the US is currently "at a heightened threat level from a terrorism perspective." He further elaborated, saying, "We have had dangerous individuals enter the United States of a variety of sorts. [...] From an FBI perspective, we are seeing a wide array of dangerous threats that emanate from the border."

The New York Post reports that Basel Bassel Ebbadi, a Lebanese immigrant detained near El Paso, confessed to US Border Patrol officers his affiliation with Hezbollah. This group is known for its Iranian backing and its association with attacks linked to Hamas. Ebbadi declared his intention to "try to make a bomb" and confirmed New York as his intended destination.

As per CIS's information, Hezbollah was officially designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) by the US State Department in October 1997. The group operates extensively in Lebanon and works in collaboration with Iran to support Shia militants in Iraq, Syria, and Yemen. Globally notorious for conducting lethal attacks, Hezbollah aligns itself with the Islamic Republic of Iran and Hamas.

The New York Post disclosed that border agents encountered 98 individuals on the terror watchlist at US borders in FY 2022 and 172 in FY 2023. In just the first few months of 2024 alone, federal data has reported that 59 individuals have been apprehended.

According to its official website, CIS is a non-partisan research organization dedicated to providing insights into immigration effects within the US. Established in 1985 by Otis Graham Jr., it stands as the nation’s only think tank solely focused on immigration policy.