The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is reportedly considering reassigning several thousand agents currently focused on immigration enforcement to roles in counterterrorism and cybersecurity.
According to multiple sources cited by ABC News, the reorganization has been accelerated following U.S. airstrikes in Iran over the past weekend.
The agency has already begun internal discussions to transfer at least 2,000 agents to national security-related assignments, particularly to prevent potential retaliatory attacks from foreign powers, including Iran, ABC News reported.
“The FBI does not comment on operational adjustments or personnel decisions,” a bureau official told ABC News. “However, we constantly reevaluate our posture to address the most urgent national security threats and to ensure the safety of the American people,” added an FBI spokesperson.
Since the FBI began supporting President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement agenda, internal concerns have grown about the agency’s decreasing focus on cybersecurity and counterterrorism cases.
Field agents have indicated that the bureau’s priorities appear to be drifting away from its traditional missions, ABC News reported. The outlet had previously revealed that agents assigned to sensitive matters such as cyber defense and domestic terrorism had been redirected to support field operations assisting the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in implementing federal immigration policies.
This strategic shift comes amid escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, as the United States braces for potential Iranian retaliation following recent strikes on suspected nuclear sites.
