U.S. officials are extremely concerned about a major security breach after two alleged U.S. intelligence documents about Israel’s preparations for an attack on Iran were published by a Telegram account affiliated with Iran.
Why it matters
The leak comes as Israel completes weeks of preparations for a retaliation against Iran, which attacked Israel with a barrage of ballistic missiles on Oct. 1.
– The leak could be an attempt to disrupt the Israeli operation.
– The Pentagon and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence declined to comment on the leaked documents, but did not dispute their authenticity.
Driving the news: A Telegram channel by the name “Middle East Spectator” claimed on Friday that it had received documents from a source in the U.S. intelligence community about Israel’s preparations for an attack on Iran.
The Telegram channel routinely publishes pro-Iranian content, and the profile of the X account affiliated with the channel says it is located in Iran.
– The documents include an alleged Visual Intelligence report by the Department of Defense National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) distributed inside the U.S. intelligence community earlier this week.
– The authenticity of the documents has not been independently verified by Axios.
The alleged report details measures that have been carried out in recent days at several Israeli Air Force bases, including the transfer of advanced munitions which, according to the report, were intended for an attack on Iran.
– It also states that according to U.S. signals intelligence, the Israeli Air Force conducted a large exercise this week involving intelligence planes and likely fighter jets trained for a possible attack against Iran.
– The alleged intelligence report also detailed preparations in Israeli drone units for an attack against Iran.
Between the lines: The report, if accurate, would suggest very close and detailed surveillance by U.S. intelligence of Israel’s preparations for an attack on Iran, including the use of satellites to spy on operations carried out at Israeli Air Force bases.
The potential leak could be the sign of very serious security breach within the U.S. intelligence community that resulted in top secret classified information reaching a Telegram channel affiliated with Iran.
What they’re saying: A U.S. official told Axios that the alleged leak is extremely concerning, but that he doesn’t believe it would influence Israel’s operational plans against Iran.
A senior Israeli official said that the Israeli defense establishment is aware of the alleged leak and takes it very seriously.
Source
a href=”https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-825249″ target=”_blank”>Jerusalem Post
The timing of the leak comes as Israel is completing preparations for a retaliatory strike on Iran in response to the October 1 missile attack:
Senior American officials voiced serious concern on Saturday following the leak of two US intelligence documents allegedly outlining Israel`s preparations for a potential strike on Iran. These documents were published by a Telegram account linked to Iran.
While both the US Department of Defense and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence declined to comment on the leaked documents, they did not deny their authenticity.
The timing of the leak comes as Israel is completing preparations for a retaliatory strike on Iran in response to the October 1 missile attack. An unnamed senior Israeli official remarked, “Israel`s defense establishment is aware of the leak and takes it very seriously.”
The leak occurred on Friday when the Middle East Spectator Telegram channel claimed it had received documents about Israel`s strike preparations from a source within the US intelligence community. This Telegram channel is known for publishing pro-Iranian propaganda, and its associated Twitter account states that its operators are based in Iran.
The documents included an alleged report from the US Department of Defense’s visual intelligence agency, which had been circulated within the US intelligence community three days earlier. The report detailed alleged recent actions at Israel Air Force (IAF) bases, including the movement of advanced munitions believed to be intended for a strike on Iran. The report also noted that intelligence obtained through wiretaps indicated that the IAF conducted an exercise this week involving fighter jets and drones as part of its strike preparations.
A breach in security
The leaked documents reportedly revealed close surveillance by US intelligence on Israel`s preparations for a strike on Iran, including the use of satellites to monitor activities at Israeli Air Force bases. The alleged leak also highlights a severe security breach within the US intelligence community, allowing highly classified information to reach entities affiliated with Iran.
American officials described the incident as “extremely serious” but noted that, in their view, the leak is unlikely to affect Israel`s operational plans.
See text obtained from the Telegram Group “Middle East Spectator”
[https://t.me/Middle_East_Spectator/11183]
EXCLUSIVE: An informed source within the U.S. intelligence community has shared with us an extremely sensitive ‘top secret’ U.S. intelligence document from the NGIA, dated October 15-16, detailing Israeli preparations for an extensive strike inside Iran
According to the report, the U.S. has observed the Israeli Air Force handling ALBMs (air-launched ballistic missiles) like ‘Golden Horizon’ (at least 16) and ‘ROCKS’ (at least 40) at Hatserim airbase since October 8. If all of these are used, it would be a major attack.
From October 15 to October 16 the Israeli Air Force also handled several ASMs (air-to-surface missiles) at Ramot David and Ramon airbases, indicating an imminent attack.
Additionally, the Israeli Air Force carried out an LFE exercise on October 15 to practice air-to-air refueling and combat search and rescue operations with a large number of aircraft, including at least three KC-707 tankers, one G-550 Gulfstream AWACs aircraft, and possibly fighter jets.
This classified report originates from the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, part of the U.S. Department of Defense.
US House speaker confirms probe into intelligence leak on Israel’s Iran attack plan
The United States is investigating the leak of a pair of highly classified intelligence documents describing Israel’s preparations for a retaliatory strike on Iran, House Speaker Mike Johnson said on Sunday.
The documents appear to have been prepared by the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, describing US interpretations of Israeli Air Force and Navy planning based on satellite imagery from October 15-16.
They began circulating last week on the Telegram messaging app. Israel has been planning a response to a ballistic missile barrage carried out by Iran on October 1, its second direct attack on Israel in six months.
Asked about the leak of the documents during an interview with CNN, Johnson, the US House of Representatives’ top lawmaker, said an “investigation (is) underway and I’ll get a briefing on that in a couple of hours.”
We are following it closely,” Johnson added.
The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The Pentagon said it was looking into the leak reports.
My Colleague, Middle East Spectator, has leaked some documents relating to an NGIA analysis done by the Pentagon in recent activities in Israel relating to a response against Iran.
? MedManOG (@MedManOG) October 17, 2024
The documents are probably real. https://t.co/vkACSN1Lo5 pic.twitter.com/5qIllcvDtL
A senior Israeli official told the Axios news site that the defense establishment was taking the leak very seriously. A US official said that the alleged leak, while extremely concerning, would not impact plans for an attack against Iran.
The New York Times reported that officials acknowledged privately that the documents were authentic, but that they likely only represent a portion of information the US has on its close ally’s plans.
The two files were published by a pro-Iran Telegram account, the “Middle East Spectator,” which claimed they were sent by a source in the Pentagon and detailed US observations of measures taken by the Israeli Air Force on October 15-16, in the lead-up to an attack.
The first document is titled: “Israel: Air Force Continues Preparations for Strike on Iran and Conducts a Second Large-Force Employment Exercise.” It describes activities including ballistic and air-to-surface missile handling.
The second is titled: “Israel: Defense Forces Continue Key Munitions Preparations and Covert UAV Activity Almost Certainly for a Strike on Iran.” UAVs are also known as drones.
The documents noted observing IAF exercises using air-launched ballistic missiles (ALBMs), air-to-surface ballistic missiles, fighter jets, UAVs, and refueling tankers previously used during Israeli strikes on Houthi sites in Yemen.
According to the documents, the IAF has handled at least 16 Golden Horizon ALBMs and 40 IS02 (ROCKS) ALBMs since October 8.
The Islamic Republic has been bracing for an Israeli reprisal after its latest direct attack on Israel, in which it fired 200 ballistic missiles that sent most of Israel to bomb shelters on October 1, killed a Palestinian man in the West Bank, and caused minor damage in residential areas and at military bases. Iran said the missile assault came in response to strikes in Lebanon that killed the top leadership of the Iran-backed Hezbollah terror group and a July blast in Tehran that killed Hamas politburo head Ismail Haniyeh.
Washington has sought to temper Jerusalem’s plans to retaliate for the October 1 attack – which forced most of the country to rush to bomb shelters and safe rooms and killed a Palestinian man in the West Bank – fearing that the escalating tit-for-tats could spark a wider war, drawing in others in the region.
It has urged Israel not to strike Iran’s nuclear or oil facilities.
The attack caused damage in Israel, including in Israeli airbases, though the military has said that no aircraft or critical infrastructure were hit, and the IAF is operating at full capacity.
Channel 12 news on Saturday evening quoted an unnamed Israeli source as saying Israel hopes that a drone attack on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s private home in Caesarea earlier in the day would give Israel “greater legitimacy for a wider range of targets” in Iran if necessary.
Netanyahu said the drone attack represented an attempted assassination and blamed it on “the agents of Iran.”
US President Joe Biden, responding to questions from reporters, said last week he had a good understanding of when and how Israel would attack Iran. But he also said he sees an opportunity to end the two enemies? back-and-forth strikes.
Publicado em 10/20/2024 16h09
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