U.S. intelligence officials say Iranian efforts to kill Americans overseas have entered an “advanced” phase, as Washington scales back diplomatic operations across the Middle East amid rising security threats and fears that military action against Tehran could resume.
The assessment appeared in an unclassified memorandum dated October 23 and signed by Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton. The memo, addressed to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and obtained by Axios, said the intelligence was one factor behind the decision to reduce staffing at U.S. diplomatic facilities.
“Through various channels, we have received intelligence that Iran has substantially increased efforts to target U.S. personnel,” Clayton wrote. He added that Iranian efforts to carry out lethal attacks against Americans had reached an advanced stage in the Middle East and in several other countries.
The memorandum, which also went to CIA Director John Ratcliffe, said information about the Iranian threat was relevant to more State Department employees than had been authorized to access it.
Clayton said the findings had already been provided to senior State Department officials with the necessary security clearances. He also offered to reduce the classification of as much of the intelligence as possible, allowing Rubio to share it with a broader group of officials.
The memo did not specify who might be targeted, explain how the alleged operations were being organized or identify the countries outside the Middle East where Americans could face danger.
Several U.S. officials have separately confirmed the document is authentic, including to CNN, which also reviewed a copy. A U.S. official told Al Arabiya English correspondent Joseph Haboush that suspected Iranian plans against American officials, combined with the possibility of attacks by Iran-backed Houthi forces, were influencing staffing decisions at U.S. embassies operating under heightened restrictions in the region.
The intelligence warning arrives as the State Department shrinks the U.S. diplomatic footprint across the Middle East because of threats linked to Iran and the Houthis.
Earlier in the week, Washington directed nonessential employees and family members to depart the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh, as well as the consulates in Jeddah and Dhahran, citing a surge in Houthi attacks targeting Saudi Arabia.
CNN reported Friday that staffing changes were also being made at several other diplomatic locations, including posts in Bahrain and Kuwait, as U.S. officials considered the risk of a wider regional conflict.
A U.S. official cited in the report said the State Department had also ordered staffing cuts on Friday at American embassies in the United Arab Emirates, Lebanon, Qatar and Jordan.
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“We decided that due to the threat of Houthi attacks and Iranian terror plots we need to reduce our footprint and keep only essential staff,” the official said.
The measures come as Tehran has issued increasingly direct warnings against U.S. troops and military facilities throughout the Middle East.
On Thursday, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said the confrontation could spread to American bases in the region if U.S. forces continued escorting ships through the Strait of Hormuz.
“The US military must know that if this trend continues, the conflict will extend to its bases in the region,” the IRGC said in its warning.
Reuters reported Friday that two senior Iranian security officials had outlined possible retaliation plans should the United States or Israel launch new strikes. Those options reportedly included targeting undersea communications cables and military facilities.
“If Iran is attacked, there will be no more red lines… from undersea cables to military bases, including covert ones,” one of the officials said.
The escalating warnings coincide with President Donald Trump’s renewed threats of military action against Iran. On Friday, Trump said the United States could begin another phase of Operation Epic Fury if Tehran failed to reach an agreement with Washington.
“We may do another little Epic Fury, or they’ll agree,” Trump told supporters at a campaign rally in Fort Myers, Florida.
“If they’re smart, they’ll just say, ‘Let’s get down to business.’ But, you know, I doubt they’ll do that because perhaps they’re not smart,” he added.
Multiple outlets have reported in recent days that the Trump administration is considering renewed military strikes against Iran, potentially after the November midterm elections, with possible targets including the country’s missile and drone capabilities, energy infrastructure and nuclear facilities.
No decision to launch another operation has been announced.
