California Gears Up for Potential Drone Threat from Iran, Says Governor Newsom

Governor Gavin Newsom of California has announced that the state is bracing itself for potential drone attacks from Iran, a situation he attributes to former President Donald Trump’s endless conflict with the nation.

Last month, the FBI issued a warning to California’s law enforcement agencies about the possibility of Iranian drone strikes targeting the West Coast, a potential response to ongoing hostilities with the Islamic Republic.

Should Iran succeed in hitting a target on American soil, it would mark a significant intensification of hostilities.

“It’s about gathering intelligence and maintaining a state of readiness for the worst possible scenarios,” Newsom remarked to journalists on Wednesday.

“We’ve been considering these scenarios for a while, particularly in light of the FBI’s warnings. It’s part of a broader strategy to collaborate with federal and local partners at the state level, ensuring we’re prepared for any developments,” he added.

A day earlier, Newsom appeared to blame Trump for ‘drone issues’ that have been ‘top of mind’ for him.  

‘I haven’t talked to the President directly about this,’ he admitted. ‘I wish the President would talk to the American people about what this is all about, what’s the end game?’ Newsom said.

He added, ‘We’ve seen no real endgame in sight when it comes to the Strait of Hormuz.’ Iran has blocked the critical shipping lane, putting a bottleneck on crude oil exports.

California Governor Gavin Newsom characterized potential Iranian drone attacks on California as a ‘critical’ threat currently under state and federal surveillance, while simultaneously criticizing President Trump’s handling of Middle Eastern conflicts

Since the first 24 hours of Operation Epic Fury, Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks have dropped drastically

Law enforcement in California were reportedly alerted weeks ago to a possible ‘surprise attack’ from Iranian drones. 

‘Iran allegedly aspired to conduct a surprise attack using unmanned aerial vehicles from an unidentified vessel off the coast of the United State Homeland, specifically against unspecified targets in California, in the event that the US conducted strikes against Iran,’ the alert obtained by ABC News said. 

‘We have no additional information on the timing, method, target, or perpetrators of this alleged attack,’ the FBI update continued. 

The alert surfaced as the Trump administration continued its sustained offensive against Iran. This move follows a pattern of escalation in the Middle East, where the regime in Tehran has used drone warfare as a primary tool for retaliation. 

Both the FBI and the White House declined to comment for this story. 

Mexican drug cartel drone usage has also ticked up in recent months, raising the stakes for US border security and the safety of personnel operating in the region.

A government bulletin from September warned that an unverified tip indicated Mexican cartel bosses may have greenlit drone strikes targeting American law enforcement and military personnel along the southern border. 

The bulletin noted that while such an attack on US soil would mark a dramatic and historic escalation, officials considered the scenario plausible, even as they acknowledged cartels have historically steered clear of provocations likely to trigger a heavy response from Washington.

Iran has showed off a sprawling underground network of tunnels filled with row after row of drones and rockets

File photo of the Hollywood sign in California

Rows of Iranian drones and missiles were seen in underground tunnels 

The warning provided no details on how drone-capable ships might approach the US coast.

Officials have remained wary for years that Tehran might ‘forward-deploy’ hardware in anticipation of a direct military confrontation with Washington or Jerusalem.

The drone threat comes as Iran launched a cyber offensive against one of the world’s leading medical technology companies.

Michigan-based Stryker experienced a global outage on Wednesday, saying thousands of employees have lost access to work systems.

It employs approximately 53,000 people globally.

The company is a leading provider in advanced medical technologies that improve healthcare outcomes, including joint replacements, robotic-assisted surgical systems, trauma and neurotechnology products.

The Tehran-aligned Handala group issued a statement on Telegram, saying it wiped more than 200,000 systems and extracted 50 terabytes of data in retaliation for military strikes on Iran.

Handala emerged around 2022 and has claimed responsibility for a number of cyberattacks against Israeli and Western targets.

Footage released by the Fars News Agency, which is closely linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, shows long lines of missiles and Shahed drones

A Shahed drone fired by Iran 

Shahed drones cost just tens of thousands of dollars to produce, and take little time to manufacture

The alert surfaced as the Trump administration began its sustained offensive against Iran. This move follows a pattern of escalation in the Middle East, where Tehran has increasingly utilized drone warfare as a primary tool for retaliation

The group claimed it shut down Stryker offices in 79 countries and that all extracted data is ‘now in the hands of the free people of the world.’

Stryker is active in over 100 countries around the world. 

‘Our major cyber operation has been executed with complete success,’ Handala says in a statement, describing the attack as retaliation for what it calls ‘the brutal attack on the Minab school’ and for ‘ongoing cyber assaults against the infrastructure of the Axis of Resistance.’