A little-known US website 'Federal Depository Library Program' was hacked by a group, who claimed to be Iranian hackers. They posted a revenge message, along with a photograph of the Iranian flag, Ayatollah Khomeini and Donald Trump, being punched on the face.
The group's affiliation to Iran has not been confirmed
The message attached, read, "Martyrdom was (Suleimani's) reward for years of implacable efforts". "With his departure and with God's power, his work and path will not cease and severe revenge awaits those criminals who have tainted their filthy hands with his blood and blood of the other martyrs," it said, CBS reported.
"This is only small part of Iran's cyber ability !" another caption on the page read in white text on a black background. The website has been restored now. Though the name of the group is 'Iran Cyber Security Group Hackers', its affiliation to Iran hasn't been confirmed.
Earlier on Saturday, the US Department of Homeland Security had sent out a national advisory warning of Iran's cyber-attacks capabilities. "Iran maintains a robust cyber program and can execute cyberattacks against the United States," the bulletin said. "Iran is capable, at a minimum, of carrying out attacks with temporary disruptive effects against critical infrastructure in the United States".
Major escalation in the middle-east
A US drone attack at Baghdad International Airport on Thursday, killed top Iranian military commander Qasem Soleimani, the architect of Iran's middle-east policy. Iran's proxies are operating, from Yemen (Houthis) to Lebanon (Hezbollah).
Iran's retaliation is yet to be seen, though a top Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corp (IRGC) commander threatened to hit 35 US targets. In response, the US President Donald Trump threatened to hit '52' Iranian targets, including its cultural heritage sites.
The United States has maintained that the assassination was carried out to 'stop a war and not to start one', but the move is bound to escalate tensions in the middle-east. The US has already flown thousands of its troops, to the middle-east and Israel and increased vigilance, especially along its northern border, with Syria.
