SCN’s Kerry Sleeper Testifies Before Congress on Escalated Threats of Targeted Violence Directed to the Jewish Community from Foreign Terrorist Organizations, Domestic Extremists, and Lone Actors

Remarks Highlight Emerging Threat Data and Provide Clear Recommendations, Including the Establishment of a Cross-Functional Task Force for Real-Time Intelligence and Resource Sharing to Protect Jewish Institutions

Kerry Sleeper, Deputy Director of Intelligence and Information Sharing for the Secure Community Network (SCN), the official safety and security organization for the Jewish community in North America, testified today before Congress on the unprecedented threat environment facing the Jewish community in the U.S. and the urgent national security threat it poses. The hearing was led by Rep. August Pfluger, Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Counterterrorism and Intelligence, and Rep. Seth Magaziner, the Ranking Member.

Following three targeted, violent antisemitic attacks in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania; Washington, D.C.; and Boulder, Colorado, and a dramatic surge in targeted incidents against the American Jewish community since Hamas’ 07 October terror attacks, Sleeper delivered an urgent intelligence briefing to the House Subcommittee on Counterterrorism and Intelligence, detailing the escalating danger facing the Jewish community and calling for a comprehensive national security strategy to address violent extremism.

“The urgent and escalating threat facing the Jewish community needs to be confronted now,” said Sleeper. “Protecting Jewish life must be a national priority, and that was emphasized today. SCN will continue to work closely with its federal, state, and local law enforcement and security partners to help ensure the safety and security of the Jewish community in America.”

In his prepared testimony, Sleeper stated that SCN analysts identified 500 Threats to Life (TTLs) last year, which were shared with the FBI for rapid mitigation. This year, that number is projected to exceed 700, representing a 40% increase. He also noted that in the week following the 21 May shooting outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C., SCN analysts detected 6,000 violent threats targeting the Jewish community.

His testimony also called for laying the groundwork for a national security, intelligence, and information-sharing strategy, supported by law enforcement and partners at all levels, to protect the Jewish community through a coordinated approach to communal security. Sleeper urged the creation of a “clearly defined and comprehensive national strategy to protect the Jewish community from acts of targeted violence…managed by a task force with the specific focus of identifying and clarifying the threat regardless of its origin… and coordinating strike teams across the country to arrest individuals threatening the Jewish community with acts of targeted violence.”

A full transcript of Sleeper’s prepared remarks can befound here. 

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