In the midst of heightened concerns over airport security following the Tuesday bombing of the Istanbul Airport, a pro-ISIS Twitter account has threatened attacks at Los Angeles International Airport and New York's JFK airports over the July 4 holiday weekend, as well as London's Heathrow Airport.
The Twitter account said attacks would be carried out on planes "flying from Heathrow to the U.S." and indicated "there will be a device placed in either Heathrow, LAX or JFK airports."
The threat is particularly worrying since authorities are bracing themselves for a weekend of travel chaos in the U.S. It is estimated up to 43 million people will be traveling over Independence Day weekend.
The threat was reported on the SITE Intelligence Group website, a for-profit company that tracks online activity of jihadist organizations, led by Israeli analyst Rita Katz.
The Twitter threat comes one day after the FBI reported there are no known "specific or credible security threats" as the U.S. heads into the holiday weekend.
According to an FBI statement to Reuters, "The absence of known threats does not ensure safety. There were no threats known before the Orlando massacre, in which a gunman who pledged loyalty to Islamic State killed 49 people and wounded 53 more in the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history. … [M]ass transit systems are particularly vulnerable to attack. It also said an attack over the U.S. Independence Day holiday would garner media attention that would further Islamic State's propaganda efforts."
The statement added, "However, law enforcement and members of the public must remain vigilant. ... The FBI asks members of the public to maintain awareness of their surroundings and to report any suspicious activity to law enforcement."
The last threat reflects the increased terrorist activities by ISIS. The British Foreign and Commonwealth Office reports seven countries across Europe are considered "high risk" for terrorist attacks.
London's Daily Mail reports, "[T]he June 28 attack in Turkey hit one day after the US State Department issued a travel warning to American citizens about the increased terror threat in the Turkey – and to avoid the south of the country altogether. The current threat level in Turkey is currently classified as an emergency alert. And at the beginning of June, the State Department issued a Europe-wide travel alert, specifically concerning the European Soccer Championship currently underway in France and for the Catholic Church's World Youth day in Poland this July."