CIA Director John Brennan confirmed in an interview with CBS’ “60 Minutes” what most Americans fear about the Islamic State--namely, that they will try to carry out attacks in the United States.
“I’m expecting them to try to put in place – the operatives, the material or whatever else that they need to do or to incite people to carry out these attacks, clearly,” he said.
“So, I believe that their attempts are inevitable,” he continued, before offering encouraging words: “I don’t think their successes necessarily are.”
“Numerous” attacks from the terror group have already been prevented, he said.
“Believe me, intelligence security services have stopped numerous attacks – operatives that have been moved from maybe the Iraq to Syria theater into Europe,” he added.
“They have been stopped and interdicted and arrested and detained and debriefed because of very, very good intelligence.”
The CIA chief also said the agency was aware of an attack being planned somewhere before the November massacre in Paris, but the communication methods used by terrorists hinder efforts by law enforcement to collect more intelligence.
“We knew just in the days before that [ISIS] was trying to carry out something,” he said.
“But the individuals involved have been able to take advantage of the newly available means of communication that are – that are walled off from law enforcement officials,” he added, referring to encryption technology.