Pushing back against initial reports that ISIS was preparing to strike New York City's public transit system, the FBI says it has zero evidence of such a plan.
"The first we heard of this threat is when the press began reporting it," an FBI official tells NBC.
Earlier Thursday, The Associated Press reported that Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said ISIS was plotting an "imminent" attack. Yet that report has since been updated to read:
Asked if the attacks were imminent, he said, "I'm not sure." Asked if the attacks had been thwarted, he said, "No." Al-Abadi said the United States had been alerted, and that the suspects included extremists from the United States and France who were fighting for the Islamic State group in Iraq. [The Associated Press]
The NYPD says it is "aware" of the report and is "in close contact" with the FBI to determine the severity of the threat. Meanwhile, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) said in a statement the state was "aware of the report and [is] treating it with the utmost precaution."