Military, intelligence, and law enforcement officials were reportedly briefed on a threat against senior Pentagon officials late last month.
Senior U.S. officials told NBC News that the threat remains active for people not just abroad, but also in the United States, and briefings suggest it is part of a potential plot to retaliate against the U.S. for an airstrike in January that killed Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani, the head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp’s Quds Force.
Defense Secretary Mark Esper has been traveling internationally this week, including to the Middle East and South Asia. His trips to Bahrain and Israel could not be reported on by journalists traveling with him until after he left the nations.
On Sep. 22, a senior leader at the Department of Defense, whose name has not been reported, was followed by an unknown vehicle with Virginia license plates, the driver of which was identified as an Iranian national, the officials said. At times, this person drove very aggressively, according to a Pentagon report.
The briefings on the potential threat are said to have happened after that encounter. The NBC News report, published on Thursday, said the Pentagon was concerned about a “serious attempt” to target the official, but the FBI investigated the matter and determined it was not part of a larger threat connected to Iran.
The FBI, CIA, and White House declined to comment on the matter to the outlet.
The reporting aligns with what Politico reported in September about intelligence officials warning U.S. Ambassador to South Africa Lana Marks about a general threat against her life, possibly in connection to Soleimani’s killing.
