A US intelligence memo warns that Iran has ramped up efforts to target American personnel. The alert follows a US staffing cutback at its Saudi Arabia mission after intensified Houthi attacks.
Iran has ramped up efforts to target US personnel, and its lethal plots against American citizens have reached "advanced stages", a senior intelligence official in the Trump administration warned in a memo seen by Reuters. Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton wrote the message to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Memo says plotting has reached advanced stages
Clayton's message, dated October 23, said the US had received intelligence through various channels that Iran had substantially increased efforts to target US personnel. He added that the plotting had reached advanced stages in the Middle East and certain other countries. CIA Director John Ratcliffe was copied on the unclassified memo, which Axios first reported.
Washington scales back in Saudi Arabia
The alert came after Washington scaled back staffing at its mission in Saudi Arabia earlier this week, in response to intensified attacks by Iran-allied Houthi forces. On Wednesday, the State Department ordered non-emergency government employees and their family members to leave US diplomatic missions in Saudi Arabia, US officials told Reuters. It also planned to withdraw family members from a number of other missions in the region.
On Saturday, the State Department updated travel advisories for more than a dozen countries across the Gulf and Middle East, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Iraq and Israel. It cited an increased threat from Iran-aligned Houthis.
Shipping attacks rise alongside the conflict
Attacks by the Houthis, on one front of the nearly eight-month-old regional conflict triggered by the Iran war, have coincided with a rise in attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. Earlier this month, sources told Reuters that Iran was preparing a more forceful response if the United States resumes large-scale military attacks on its territory.
The war with Iran is a week away from entering its ninth month. It has significantly weighed on the approval ratings of US President Donald Trump ahead of midterm elections on November 3.
Source: Investing.com (Reuters)
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