Pentagon increases threat level over alleged Israeli surveillance of US officials
US President Donald Trump (photo: Getty Images)
The Pentagon is increasingly concerned about intensified Israeli espionage against the United States, prompting it to raise its counterintelligence threat level to the highest tier, NBC News reports.
According to US officials, the Defense Intelligence Agency recently issued a new counterintelligence threat assessment amid growing tensions between Israel and the United States over further actions in the war with Iran.
Sources said the intelligence agency circulated an internal notice, seen by one current employee, in which the threat level for Israel was raised to "critical."
The decision was made amid Pentagon assessments that Israel is making significant efforts to monitor senior US officials in order to gather information on internal discussions and decisions within the Trump administration regarding conflicts in the Middle East.
A current official said the intelligence assessment includes a seven-page document and a diagram. It states that Israel's ability to conduct human intelligence and technical intelligence collection is assessed to be at a "critical level." It also cites several specific incidents that heightened US concerns.
What Israel and White House say
A representative of the Israeli embassy in Washington said claims that Israel spies on the United States are "completely false."
"Israel does not gather intelligence on American entities, let alone US government officials. Israel intelligence collection efforts are aimed at its enemies, not its allies. Any claims to the contrary are either misinformed or politically motivated," he said.
The Pentagon declined to comment, while a White House spokesperson said the story was "sourced to someone who doesn't have any knowledge of what's going on."
Other notable details
Earlier, in the second half of May, CNN reported that US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu disagreed over further steps in the war with Iran, following a phone call between them.
Shortly afterward, Axios reported that Trump called Netanyahu "crazy" during one of their conversations and accused him of ingratitude. The US leader was reportedly angered by Israel's continued escalation in Lebanon, which threatened to derail negotiations with Iran.
