The Slatest

FBI Warns of Possible ISIS-Inspired Attacks Over Holiday in U.S.

French Gendarmes patrol at the Christmas market in Tours, central France, on December 23, 2016.

GUILLAUME SOUVANT/AFP/Getty Images

Federal authorities are warning local law enforcement agencies to be particularly vigilant this weekend and coming week, noting that ISIS has called on followers to attack holiday events in the United States. The warning was issued shortly after a list of U.S. churches was published on pro-ISIS websites and social media platforms, calling for “bloody celebrations in the Christian New Year.”

The list was accompanied by a message that “aspirationally called on its supporters to attack them during the holiday season,” noted the bulletin.

“The FBI is aware of the recent link published online that urges attacks against U.S. churches. As with similar threats, the FBI is tracking this matter while we investigate its credibility,” the FBI said in a statement. The bulletin, which was issued by the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI and National Counterterrorism Center noted that it should not be seen as “indicative of a specific, credible threat.”

The warning comes mere days after the attack on a Christmas market in Berlin that left 12 people dead and injured 56. ISIS has published a video of the suspected attacker pledging allegiance to the group.

The warning also came on the same day as Australian police said they arrested seven people who were planning to launch an attack in Melbourne around Christmas. The suspected terrorists planned to “explode improvised explosive devices” in the city’s business district, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said, adding that it was “one of the most substantial terrorist plots that have been disrupted over the last several years.”