(The Center Square) – A new bill has been filed to enhance counterterrorism measures to respond to terrorism threats posed by Syria as a House committee report highlights Islamic jihad threats have only increased over the last few years.
U.S. House representatives from Texas and Tennessee introduced the Syria Terrorism Threat Assessment Act to enhance the Department of Homeland Security’s counterterrorism efforts. The bill would require DHS to evaluate national security threats posed to the U.S. by Syrians with ties to Foreign Terrorist Organizations or Specially Designated Global Terrorist Organizations.
It was filed by U.S. Rep. Morgan Luttrell, R-TX, with U.S. Reps. August Pfluger, R-TX, and Andy Ogles, R-TN, as cosponsors. All serve on the U.S. House Committee on Homeland Security and its Subcommittee on Counterterrorism and Intelligence, which Pfluger chairs.
“With the fall of the brutal Assad regime in Syria and a potential resurgence of the Islamic State and al Qaeda in the region, terror threats abroad continue to present a persistent and evolving threat to the homeland. From the threat of inspired homegrown violent extremism and lone wolves to foreign terror cells lying in wait, we cannot afford to have a complacent security posture,” Committee Chairman Mark Green, R-TN, said.
“Homegrown violent extremism and foreign jihadist networks remain a serious threat as extremist groups actively seek to infiltrate the United States,” Luttrell said. “These groups exploit online platforms and other means to remotely recruit, radicalize, and mobilize both U.S. and non-U.S. individuals to plan, support, and carry out terrorist attacks on American soil and abroad. … Syria has become a hotspot for radical extremists who want to do us harm, and they’re using every tool at their disposal to recruit, radicalize, and send bad actors our way.”
The bill ensures that DHS will “identify threats, close vulnerabilities, and strengthen counterterrorism efforts” to protect Americans and prevent future attacks.
“As a former fighter pilot who flew missions over the Middle East, I understand how crucial it is for the United States to address the growing terrorism threat across the globe, particularly in Syria,” Pfluger said. “Congress must act now to proactively address these threats.”
The bill was filed after the House Committee on Homeland Security published an updated “Terror Threat Snapshot” report identifying more than 50 Islamic jihad cases in 30 states nationwide, including Department of Justice convictions of individuals who provided material support to FTOs. The first report was published in October, The Center Square reported.
The updated report includes dozens of attempts to provide material support to ISIS, material support to Hizballah and Al Qaeda, those receiving military-type training from ISIS and Hizballah, and vehicle ramming attacks that occurred between April 2021 and January 2025.
The states where foreign jihadist networks, homeland violent extremism, Islamic jihad-related cases have been reported and prosecuted are in Alabama, California, Connecticut, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and Washington, according to the report.
The bill was filed and the committee’s reports were published after the greatest number of illegal border crossers who are known or suspected terrorists – more than 1,900 – were apprehended nationwide, The Center Square reported. The greatest number were apprehended at the northern border, The Center Square first reported, including a Jordanian national with ties to terrorism who recently was removed from the U.S. after illegally entering from Canada.
Additionally, under the Biden administration, more than two million foreign nationals illegally entered the U.S. who evaded capture, known as gotaways, The Center Square exclusively reported. Among them were 400 with confirmed ties to ISIS illegally in the U.S.; 150 were arrested, 50 were known to law enforcement but remained at large, another 200 remain unclear, The Center Square reported.
“There is no question that our national security is in a state of disrepair after the past four years of failed leadership. Americans have been the target of terror at public celebrations, and ISIS and Al-Qaeda are emboldened in the Middle East, North Africa, and Southeast Asia,” Pfluger said. With President Donald Trump now in office, “There is immense work to do to correct course and bolster our homeland security – that work begins now.”
On his first day in office, Trump declared an invasion and national emergency at the southwest border. Not soon after, he declared a national emergency at the northern border. Both actions were unprecedented. Trump also sent another 1,500 troops to the southwest border to enhance border security efforts. The U.S. military is coordinating deportation flights and overseeing the detention of the most violent criminal illegal border crossers at U.S. Naval Station Guantanamo Bay prior to removing them from the U.S.
