ICE Arrests Iranian ‘Sleeper Cells’ In U.S. Following Strikes On Nuke Sites
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested 130 Iranian nationals across the United States over the past week, with 670 currently in ICE detention, as the Trump administration intensifies enforcement efforts targeting Iranian nationals in the country illegally amid rising security concerns.
Multiple federal sources confirmed the figures, as administration officials and national security experts have warned of potential threats from sleeper cells or individuals who may be inspired to carry out retaliatory attacks following the recent U.S. strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities, Fox News reported.
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The border crisis during the Biden administration has further heightened those security concerns, as millions have entered the country illegally.
“We don’t know who they are, where they came from, why they’re here,” border czar Tom Homan said last week. “This is the biggest national security vulnerability we’ve ever seen.”
“Under Secretary [Kristi] Noem, DHS has been full throttle on identifying and arresting known or suspected terrorists and violent extremists that illegally entered this country,” added DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said. “We don’t wait until a military operation to execute; we proactively deliver on President Trump’s mandate to secure the homeland.”
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Meanwhile, former acting ICE Director Jonathan Fahey said the situation “definitely” worsened the problem.
“I think one thing that’s really concerning about that: One, they weren’t doing any really meaningful vetting in the last administration,” Fahey told Fox.
“The second part of it is, you know, we have probably 2 million known gotaways come through the last administration, and the people that went through the non-ports of entry, we knew they went through but nobody caught them, so we have no idea who went through,” he added.
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ICE sources confirm that some of those arrested have criminal histories, including charges related to drugs, weapons and domestic violence, noted Fox.
At least one individual had served as a sniper in the Iranian military within the past four years. During the Biden administration, nearly half of the approximately 1,500 Iranian nationals released into the U.S. were allowed to remain in the interior of the country.
The arrest of Ribvar Karimi, who served four years in the Iranian army before obtaining a visa to enter the United States, comes after Iran threatened “retaliation” for the U.S. and Israeli strikes last week.
LOCUST, Ala. — We arrested Ribvar Karimi for an immigration violation June 22. He reportedly served as an IRANIAN ARMY SNIPER from 2018 to 2021.
— U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (@ICEgov) June 25, 2025
🚨He had an Islamic Republic of Iran Army identification card in his possession when we arrested him!
His failure to adjust his… pic.twitter.com/62vjdCULH1
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Though President Trump has declared a cease-fire between the two nations, US antiterrorism officials are on “high alert” for the prospect that an Iranian sleeper cell actor may perpetrate a domestic act of terrorism.
According to ICE agents, Karimi was apprehended while holding a card identifying him as a member of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army.
Karimi was detained in Locust, Alabama, while on a K-1 visa, which is issued to foreigners who want to marry a US citizen. It’s not clear who was going to become his future spouse.
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He came during the Biden administration and failed to alter his status, which was a legal requirement, breaking the conditions of his visa and making him eligible for deportation, according to DHS.
ICE conducted a bigger operation that included the arrest of another person on a federal watchlist while targeting eight states and nine sanctuary communities. Mehran Makari Sahel, from St. Paul, Minnesota, was detained on June 22.
He is a former member of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) who has acknowledged having links with Hezbollah.
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A recent Supreme Court ruling permitting deportations to third-party countries — even in cases where diplomatic ties are limited — could result in detainees being removed to nations other than Iran.
