Iran Plots Reach Advanced Stages as US Cuts Embassy Staffing
The nation's top intelligence official has told the Secretary of State that Iranian plots to kill Americans abroad are further along than previously understood. Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton delivered the warning to Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday, Oct. 23, in an unclassified memo. Within hours, Washington was trimming staff at four more Middle East embassies, and officials were openly tying the two developments together.
Clayton wrote 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 the Middle East and certain other countries. Axios reported the memo first, and Fox News and the Associated Press later obtained copies. Three U.S. officials who spoke anonymously confirmed it was authentic, and said Rubio received it in both his State Department and national security adviser roles.
Public reporting describes no specific plots, targets, dates or countries beyond the Middle East. That matters: "advanced stages" is the government's own assessment, offered without public evidence. Clayton also flagged a distribution problem, writing that the risk applies to more individuals than are currently cleared to receive the intelligence. He offered to downgrade the classification of some of it so State Department personnel can be briefed.
The State Department is reducing staff at embassies in Jordan, Lebanon, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. All four were already under "restricted operations," a status the department introduced in August. The embassies remain open, staff are not required to leave, and no headcounts have been released.
The department's announcement cited Houthi threats and did not mention Iranian threats directly. A U.S. official told Fox News Digital that both the Houthi threat and Iranian terror plots targeting U.S. officials are informing the staffing adjustments. Officials separately deny the drawdowns reflect preparation for new U.S. or Israeli strikes on Iran. Those accounts can be reconciled, but none can be independently checked.
Saudi Arabia is being handled differently. On Wednesday, Oct. 21, the State Department issued an ordered departure for non-emergency personnel and their families, covering the Riyadh embassy and its satellite consulates. The embassy was badly damaged at the start of the Iran war and ran on a skeleton staff for months. The department's new travel alert says Iranian-supported Houthis have engaged in hostilities against Saudi Arabia and that the fighting has the potential to escalate rapidly beyond that area. Riyadh's airport, closed after the Oct. 10 attack, was handling only a limited number of Saudi carriers by Oct. 21.
Spokesperson Tommy Pigott said the order applies to Saudi Arabia only. Reporting conflicts on whether more is coming: Reuters cited four U.S. officials saying other Gulf missions would also order family members to leave, while AP reports that staff at the four other embassies are not required to depart. The final scope remains unsettled.
The Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia driving the move are documented, though not uniformly. Reuters reported, citing Saudi authorities, that a strike on King Fahd International Airport in Dammam killed one person and injured eight, and that debris from an intercepted drone killed two people at the Shaybah oil field. CBS News reported that the Oct. 10 strike on Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport killed 12 people and injured more than 300, including one American. Other outlets reviewed confirm the airport closure but not that casualty total, so it should be read as CBS's figure. Iran denies involvement, though some Saudi officials blame it for the Houthis' actions. The coalition's official spokesperson posted on X to announce interceptions of drones launched toward the kingdom on Oct. 20 and 21.
