In late February, the FBI warned California law enforcement that Iran had "aspired" to launch drone strikes from a vessel off the coast, in retaliation for U.S.-Israel strikes on Iran

The intelligence was unverified; the White House called for retractions and said no such threat ever existed

Newsom and local agencies issued reassuring statements and declared elevated readiness — essentially bureaucratic theater

The more serious question the episode exposed: California has no meaningful counter-drone capability of its own

Federal law restricts drone interdiction to federal agencies; state and local law enforcement cannot act independently

Experts note large Shahed-style strikes on California aren't feasible, but small modified commercial drones are a genuine, existing threat

Iran has a documented presence in Mexico and South America and now has both the drones and the motive

California needs real action: National Guard drone interdiction training, infrastructure vulnerability assessments, and pressure on Congress to expand counter-drone authority to states

Read More: https://americafirstreport.com/california-is-one-unverified-tip-away-from-realizing-it-has-no-drone-defense/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.