Intel Chief Warns Rubio Iranian Plots to Kill Americans Abroad Have Reached 'Advanced Stages' as Embassies Cut Staff
A one-page unclassified memo from Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton says Iran has 'substantially increased' efforts to target U.S. personnel. It names no targets and does not say an attack is imminent.
Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton told Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday that Iran has stepped up efforts to kill Americans abroad, and that the plotting has reached an advanced stage. U.S. officials confirmed the memo is real after Axios first reported it, Fox News says.
The warning. In the one-page unclassified memo, Clayton wrote: "Specifically, through various channels, we have received intelligence that Iran has substantially increased efforts to target U.S. personnel." He added that "the lethal plotting efforts by the Iranians against U.S. citizens have reached advanced stages in both the Middle East and certain other countries."
What it leaves out. According to CBS News and Axios, the memo does not name specific targets, does not name the countries outside the Middle East, does not describe the plots and does not say whether an attack is imminent. Clayton offered to downgrade as much of the sensitive intelligence as possible so Rubio can share it with a wider group of personnel who may be at risk. CIA Director John Ratcliffe was copied, CBS reports.
Embassies. Earlier this week the State Department ordered family members and nonessential staff to leave the embassy in Riyadh and the consulates in Jeddah and Dhahran. Axios reports that on Friday the department also ordered cuts to diplomatic and government staff at embassies in the United Arab Emirates, Lebanon, Qatar and Jordan, citing a U.S. official. "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. CNN reported the four-embassy reduction first, per Axios.
The backdrop. Iran-backed Houthi rebels have stepped up drone and missile attacks on Saudi Arabia. CBS reports an Oct. 8 strike on Riyadh's King Khalid Airport killed at least a dozen people, including a U.S. citizen. The memo lands as the administration weighs more military action against Iran. At a Florida rally Friday, President Trump said, "We may do another little Epic Fury, or they'll agree," referring to the military campaign launched in February. CBS notes the U.S. and Iran have not struck each other in recent weeks, and that Trump has not ruled out restarting hostilities after the midterms.
Note for readers: we read Fox's headline and summary and the CBS News and Axios write-ups of the memo, not the memo itself. The plots described are intelligence assessments, and the public record gives no detail on who is targeted or when.