(NewsNation) — As Hamas invades Israel and Hezbollah threatens a potential assault in northern Israel, the U.S. Border Patrol is vigilant for terrorist organizations looking to exploit an already strained U.S-Mexico border.

This presents a significant number of individuals who might pose a threat to the U.S. In the fiscal year 2023, 151 people who tried to enter the country were identified in the FBI’s terrorist watchlist — an increase from 99 in 2022 and 15 in 2021, according to data from U.S. Customer and Border Protection.

“We’re seeing what 175 different countries are being represented and encountered at our border. The cartel isn’t stopping from bringing people in from China, or the Middle East,” said Charles Marino, a former U.S. Department of Homeland Security advisor. “The number of gotaways should stoke fear in the hearts of the American public. We have no idea who’s coming into this country, we could be introducing terrorist cells, which everyone acknowledges whether they want to or not.”

In September, U.S. Customer and Border Protection encountered more than 8,000 migrants from special interest countries at the southern border — only a thousand more than the month before.

Last year, agents encountered more than 76,000 people from special interest countries — including more than 3,000 people from Egypt, over 450 from Iran, 375 from Syria, 114 from Lebanon and more than 150 between Iraq and Yemen.

National security advisors told NewsNation the growing number of encounters with countries, such as Iran, that chant “death to America,” is a matter of great concern for U.S. safety, particularly when thorough vetting isn’t feasible.

Sources told NewsNation that people from these special-interest countries frequently reside in neighboring nations like Brazil or Peru for several years, during which they establish residency, acquire passports of identification, and subsequently cross the U.S. border with minimal detection or they are visa overstays.