DEARBORN — The community continues to be cautious in the days following online threats aimed at the Muslim population. In an ironic twist, a city that is often misconstrued and suspected of abiding by Sharia law and harboring terrorists, is now the city that many feel is a likely target.

“There’s an overwhelming amount of phobia in the city right now,” said Dearborn resident Manal Farhat. “We’ve been nervous about everything. We can’t go to a restaurant or hookah lounge without having second thoughts and feeling anxious. My friends and I don’t want to go anywhere that has a large gathering of Arabs because we think some lunatic is going to come in and set it off.”

On Tuesday, November 17, the FBI announced that it was investigating threats against the city following an intense reaction to the Paris attacks last week.

The FBI Detroit office said it is leading a joint task force following concerns from local residents that the community is at high-risk from being targeted by racists and bigots living here.

“In the immediate wake of the attacks in Paris, law enforcement at all levels has confronted a surge of misguided retaliatory threats toward others across the country,” the FBI said in a statement. “In response to recent threats in Dearborn, the FBI Detroit Field Office, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan and the Dearborn Police Department have collaborated to ensure law-abiding citizens are protected and to deter those who would threaten them.”

David P. Gelios, special agent in charge of the FBI Detroit Field Office, said the FBI has developed a relationship with the Arab American community in metro Detroit and it will continue to address their safety concerns.

“The FBI Detroit will aggressively work with our state and local partners to investigate and bring to justice those who would make violent threats against others in response to, or in retribution for, the terrorist attacks conducted in Paris last week,” Gelios said.

In an interview with the Detroit Free Press, U.S. Attorney Barbra McQuade echoed those statements.

“We want to deter anyone from making misguided threats as a backlash to the Paris attacks,” she said.

The announcement comes on the heels of at least one confirmed online threat. Sarah Beebe, a woman from Fort Gratiot, Michigan, caused a social media stir over the weekend when she threatened the city on her Twitter account.

“Dearborn, MI has the highest population in the United States. Let’s fuck that place up and send a message to ISIS. We’re coming,” she tweeted.

Beebe has since apologized for the tweet. Meanwhile, the Dearborn Police Department is likely to forward her case to the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office and the U.S. Attorney’s office for review of possible charges.

This week, the Michigan Chapter of the Council on Islamic American Relations (CAIR-MI) announced that it was also looking into a case in metro Detroit where a Muslim woman was nearly run off the road by a man who was driving near her and was yelling obscenities.

The surge in Islamophobic-fueled actions and bigoted remarks on social media in recent days has left Arab American and Muslim American residents on high alert.

According to Dearborn Police, there has been heightened police presence patrolling around the city’s mosques this week.

Dearborn Mayor Jack O’Reilly has also been vocal about protecting the city during what he said was a sensitive time. He warned people not to let their emotions control their actions.

“Be careful about overreacting to events that are outside our control and having them spill over and become a dangerous thing for our community where we create these kinds of emotional impacts,” O’Reilly said. “When you are acting emotionally you are making the worst decisions.”

Despite the joint task force with the city and federal authorities, there is still widespread fear and paranoia among locals here.

American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee of Michigan (ADC-MI) Director Fatina Abdrabboh has addressed these concerns head on with local television affiliates. Abdrabboh told viewers on Fox 2 News that the community condemned acts of terrorism outright and now has to face an unfair backlash.

“The hate speech directed toward this community presents a number of alarming situations whereby Islamic centers, Arab-American businesses and really huge chunks of the community remain concerned for their safety in terms of backlash,” Abdrabboh said.

Arab Civil Rights League Executive Director Nabih Ayad said local residents should be alert, but that they should also keep in mind that authorities are doing their best to keep the city safe.

He referenced incidents from previous years where Christian extremists attempted to disrupt the city but ultimately failed.

“I know local and federal agents understand and have had the proper training to protect this community.” Ayad said. “I think the authorities know the drill, because we’ve had so many incidents on a local level before. These types of concerns are nothing new to this community. What is new is the magnitude of these particular concerns. You do have crazies out there who want to do harm to this community because of their twisted way of thought.”

In the last week, the ACRL has sent out letters and emails to remind residents to be vigilant. The civil rights organization urges anyone to contact them regarding complaints or harassment, intimidation and assault.

“We have to remind the non-Arab and non-Muslim community that there will be consequences should anyone attempt anything,” Ayad said. “This community does have representation and the ACRL is willing to stand for anyone who is targeted and challenged on these issues. The laws apply to all Americans, including Arab Americans and Muslim Americans.”