US intelligence warns Iran has stepped up plots against its personnel

US National Intelligence Director Jay Clayton has warned that Iran has “substantially increased efforts to target US personnel” in the Middle East and other regions.

In a memo marked unclassified and sent to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday, Clayton said Iranian lethal‑plotting against US citizens has reached “advanced stages” and that he is working to downgrade intelligence so it can be shared with State Department staff.

The warning coincides with the US State Department’s decision to adjust staffing at diplomatic posts, including the recent order for non‑emergency US embassy staff to leave Saudi Arabia. The move follows a surge in attacks by Yemen’s Iran‑backed Houthis on Saudi targets.

According to Saudi authorities, at least 21 people have been killed in Houthi attacks on Saudi airports since the start of October, including a missile strike on Riyadh’s international airport on 10 October that killed 13 and injured 308.

The Houthis say their attacks are retaliation for a Saudi blockade of Yemeni ports and an air strike on Sanaa airport. The wider regional tension follows the US‑Israel air campaign against Iran in February and subsequent Iranian strikes on US allies, as well as the collapse of a June preliminary US‑Iran agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

Security implications

A US official told the BBC that embassy staffing decisions are being constantly reviewed in light of new information about the security environment, including the threat of Houthi attacks and Iranian terror plots targeting US officials.

Source: BBC News. Photo: Satheesh Cholakkal / Pexels.