The Screen Actors Guild’s headquarters in both L.A. and New York City were put on high alert on Tuesday due to a serious threat that seemed to relate to the situation in Iran. According to a report by TMZ, the SAG offices got a threatening phone call in the early afternoon. With the help of police, SAG deemed the threats credible enough to warrant an evacuation.
The call reportedly came to the NYC headquarters for SAG around 12 p.m. ET on Tuesday. The exact wording of the threat has not been reported, but sources told TMZ it was “something to the effect of:” “I’m going to blow up the L.A. and NY SAG Offices.”
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Law enforcement sources told reporters that the threat was actually less specific than that, but said that it was still very serious. In addition, they said that the caller was “unhappy” with President Donald Trump, and his recent airstrike in Bhagdad, which killed Iranian military leader Qasem Soleimani.
Although the call came to the New York offices, the Los Angeles branch was the one that was fully evacuated. The police reportedly responded in force, even calling in the bomb squad to do a complete sweep of the building.
The New York Police Department reportedly had a shorter visit to the offices in Manhattan. They took a report for aggravated harassment, but did not advise a full evacuation of the building.
The story sparked confusion on social media, where commenters wondered why an Iran sympathizer would target the entertainment industry, where it often seems that most big voices are staunchly opposed to President Trump. However, others pointed out that the threat was not necessarily made by someone on the “side” of Iran, nor could they expect a terrorist threat to make much sense.
“Call came from the White House,” one person joked.
Others noted that they do not feel safe in any public places due to the recent international violence.
“Look I’m not doin s— for a while,” one person tweeted. “I won’t be at Disney world, I’ve cancelled the Super Bowl trip. f— that. We’re laying low over here.”
Over the weekend, President Trump ordered an airstrike to assassinate Soleimani without informing Congressional leaders. Some international law experts are arguing that the airstrike may have been illegal, according to a report by NBC News.
“We have carried out the attack on the territory of a state that plainly did not give us permission,” said international law professor Mary Ellen O’Connell. “The attack was unlawful, the assassination was not justifiable.”
Iran has promised “crushing revenge” for the assassination.
