New Delhi: The US Department of Defense has raised its counterintelligence threat assessment to its highest level, as reports by American intelligence point to a growing concern over Israel monitoring American negotiations with Iran, according to The New York Times.
Senior officials—including US’ special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff, Pentagon top policy official Elbridge A. Colby and one of his deputies, Michael P. DiMino IV—are suspected to have faced intensified efforts by Tel Aviv to eavesdrop on their communications.
It’s unclear as to why Colby and DiMino—in-charge of Pentagon Policy for the Middle East—are the targets of natural interest to Israel, the report adds.
Some US officials, NYT’s report says, have told the daily that Washington was infuriated when they learnt about an intensified Israeli effort to intercept US positions on talks with Iran, with the belief that Israel crossed a line.
A separate Defense Intelligence Agency report revealed that the counterintelligence threat level from Israel was recently raised from high to “critical”—its highest level, notes the NYT report, adding that it outlines a multi-year effort by Israel to spy on American military personnel and government officials.
Concerns over increased Israeli espionage efforts come as the US is negotiating an end to the joint war started by Washington and Tel Aviv against Iran. The war launched at the end of February has been ongoing for over three months. A fragile ceasefire has been in place for about two months.
As a result of the joint operation, American and Israeli military and diplomatic officials have been working side-by-side for the better part of the last four months. This level of close cooperation seen between the armed forces of the two countries has rarely been seen in the past. The US military is already sharing tactical and operational information with Israel.
According to a senior US official, quoted in NYT, Israel wants to better understand Trump’s negotiation strategy and shifting stances on the peace talks with Iran. Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s war goals have sharply diverged in recent weeks. Netanyahu is seeking to further degrade Iran’s offensive capabilities, change the regime in power and also crush Hezbollah in Lebanon, which is a part of Tehran’s proxy network in the region.
However, Trump is pursuing a deal to end the war, and has been locked in negotiations with Iran via Pakistan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and find an acceptable exit from the conflict. The increased espionage efforts were identified when some American defence personnel in Israel found that software to tap their communications was found on their devices, according to NYT.
Israel’s counterintelligence threat level is now higher than any other ally of the US, and even a few adversaries, reports the American newspaper. Only South Korea, and that too in specific situations, even comes close to the concerns raised by Israeli efforts against American officials.
A White House official told NYT that the account of increased Israeli espionage activities was false, while the Pentagon refused to comment on the report.
Despite close collaboration, US troops routinely locked down their cellphones and followed strict, classified security protocols, which they declined to describe in detail for security reasons, to guard their secrets, especially while travelling to Israel, noted NYT.
The report suggests that the counterintelligence incidents began with the Biden administration and are continuing, even now, as Trump weighs options to attack Iran.
NYT also noted several such incidents in the past. As of 2021, Israeli intelligence were caught planting listening devices at DIA. headquarters. Another one occurred last year, involving Shin Bet officers attempting to bug a US Secret Service vehicle.
Top Trump administration officials’ use of private jets, personal phones, and unvetted staff made them incredibly easy targets for Israeli espionage, according to former and current US officials quoted in the report.
(Edited by Mannat Chugh)