On August 4, 2025, Senior Research Fellow Colin P. Clarke joined a virtual discussion on ‘Security Threats from Iranian Sleeper Cells’ hosted by the Henry Jackson Society. In June 2025, Israel launched a series of airstrikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities, followed ten days later by US strikes on key sites including Fordow, Isfahan, and Natanz. With Iran’s conventional military options limited, attention is turning to the possibility of retaliation through asymmetric means, including the activation of sleeper cells abroad. This online discussion assessed Iran’s possible actions in the future and whether Western intelligence and security services are prepared for the challenges ahead.
