Are the supposed sleeper cells of Iran a threat or propaganda? The short answer is, yes — it’s both.

Wouldn’t any smart country fighting for its survival seek to make itself appear more dangerous than it actually is? If we’ve learned anything over the past decade, it’s that the Iranian regime is an extremely wily and devious animal that will do anything to protect itself.

The sleeper cells, spies, or terrorists located in Western countries that remain inactive until ordered to act are a real thing. Reports indicate that shortwave radio broadcasts in Farsi had been intercepted by the U.S. and that they could possibly be triggers for sleeper agents. The Atlantic posted a recording of it here. It was revealed that these encrypted messages were communicated across several countries not long after the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed on February 28.

A retired Special Forces lieutenant colonel, Mike Nelson, who has extensive experience at U.S. Central Command, told NewsNation on Tuesday that “Iran has demonstrated a willingness, if not a good capability, to conduct attacks in the U.S. and the West for far less” by use of their agents abroad. He recalled the 80 Iranian dissidents who were assassinated in Europe in the 80s. He added that although Iran may activate these agents, the cells are “largely proven to be incompetent.”

That threat is valid and a potential danger, but on a smaller scale and much less sophisticated than the regime would want us to believe. Rayan Amiri, an Iranian refugee and leader of the Conservative Party of Iran, said, “The sleeper cells linked to the Islamist regime in Iran do exist, but their real scope is far smaller than the terrorist regime claims. Much of the talk about a global network is propaganda and psychological warfare, designed to exaggerate its reach and intimidate and fool the public or opponents.”

Amiri continued, “This shows the weakness of the terrorist totalitarian theocracy ruling Iran. The regime has no real options left except to rely on desperate acts by its proxy terror networks, such as suicide bombings and other Jihadi desperate attacks, like blind gunshots at embassies. The regime is a paper tiger and only is big in threats, not in actual capability. What it calls strength is really a sign of fragility, and its terror operations are an attempt to hide its collapsing and falling situation.”

Despite the cells being fragmented and closely watched by both U.S. intelligence agencies and Mossad, their desperate attacks can still cause damage, which is why it is vital to stay vigilant.

Both President Donald Trump and FBI Director Kash Patel have reassured Americans that, as Trump put it, they are “on top of it.” The FBI director posted on X on Monday, “FBI is working 24/7 to stay ahead of the threat and implement a sweeping Cyber strategy pursuant to President Trump’s ‘Cyber Strategy for America.’ The goal is clear: impose real cost on those who target Americans in cyberspace by dismantling their networks, pursuing the hackers and spies behind them, and degrading their capacity to operate.”

But we can’t ignore what happened under “sleepy” Joe Biden for four years — millions of people poured into our country almost entirely unvetted. That would have made it extremely easy for sleeper cells hanging out in South American countries to sneak in. For example, Hezbollah has had sleeper cells in the Western Hemisphere for some time, and they would often come through Venezuela. The CIA and FBI certainly have their work cut out for them.

Republican Senator Ted Cruz echoed this warning, “The danger has never been higher than right now, particularly after four years of open borders under Joe Biden. We know that radical Islamic terrorists entered this country, and there’s a vulnerability all across this country.”

It is unclear how many of the two million known “gotaways” — illegals who evaded an encounter with the Border Patrol — under Biden were Iranians. Many of them could have been on the terrorism watch list. A senior U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) source relayed that of the approximately 1,500 Iranian illegal aliens who entered under Biden and were arrested, 50% of them were released back into the country.

“Because of the open borders, we are at a serious catch-up phase,” former FBI Assistant Director Chris Swecker warned. “We don’t know where those thousand Iranians are, and who knows how many others got across the border. We missed an opportunity when they caught and released those thousand. We missed the opportunity to gather intel by interviewing them and thoroughly vetting them. We just simply let them go, which is gross negligence on the part of the Biden administration.”

So, yes, the sleeper cells are a potential danger (as we have already seen two attacks in recent weeks), and they are a psychological propaganda tool being used by the Iranian regime. Still, their reach and scope are limited. As Trump told reporters in reference to Iran on Wednesday, “They are pretty much at the end of the line.” We must remain on guard; a cornered animal will often turn and bite.