Leak of Israeli plan to attack Iran in coming days to be investigated by US

The US has opened an investigation into the leak of two alleged intelligence documents detailing Israel’s preparations for a possible attack on Iran in the coming days.

The documents seen by The Telegraph include interpretations of satellite images apparently recently created by the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) and analyze information collected by US spy satellites and the National Security Agency.

They were marked “top secret,” dated October 15 and 16, and were distributed on the messaging app Telegram on Friday evening.

One document says Israel continues to prepare munitions and conduct covert drone activities, while the other document describes Israeli Air Force exercises with ballistic and air-to-surface missiles.

Both say the activities were probably in preparation for an attack on Iran.

“We cannot definitively predict the scale and scope of an attack on Iran, and such an attack may occur without further GEOINT warning,” one document warns.

GEOINT is a military acronym for Geospatial Intelligence, based primarily on satellite imagery but may also include signals recordings.

The document goes on to say, “We have observed no indication that Israel intends to use a nuclear weapon,” and states that the recent dispersal of Israel’s Jericho II medium-range ballistic missiles, which are believed to have been built as nuclear delivery systems were probably defensive in nature.

Notes are “US assessment of events”

The United States does not publicly acknowledge the existence of Israel’s nuclear arsenal, something Israel itself has never admitted.

The second document described two major Israeli Air Force exercises, including refueling aircraft and an early warning aircraft.

The Telegram channel that was initially accused of leaking the documents said the documents initially appeared in a separate private group with 7,000 members.

“We also reiterate that we have no connection to the original source, who we believe to be a whistleblower within the U.S. Department of Defense,” the statement said. In a separate statement, the Telegram group said an acquaintance had obtained the documents through an anonymous source.

The group claims to be run by independent journalists and not “affiliated with Iran,” but calls the Israeli government a “Zionist regime” and uses the Tehran period as a basis.

The New York Times reported that the documents had been discussed by largely pro-Iranian accounts on Telegram since Friday.

The documents do not appear to be a comprehensive assessment of Israel’s intentions, but rather an assessment of U.S. developments as of the dates provided.

Israeli retaliation against Iran has been expected since Iran launched its own retaliatory attack on October 1, firing 200 ballistic missiles at Israeli targets in at least two waves.

The Iranian attack was in response to the assassination of senior Hamas and Hezbollah leaders.

“Deeply worrying”

US officials confirmed to The New York Times that the documents were authentic.

The government should investigate who had access to the allegedly secret documents.

“The leak is very worrying. There are some serious allegations being made there, an investigation is underway and I will be briefed on it in a few hours,” U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson told CNN’s “State of the Union.” “We’re following it closely.”

Two years ago, a major leak of classified material surfaced on Discord, including details of Ukraine’s order of battle. It was one of the largest revelations of government secrets in U.S. history.

On Friday, US President Joe Biden said during a visit to Germany that he has a good understanding of how and when Israel plans to respond to Iran’s latest ballistic missile attack.

US officials told CNN that the revelations were “deeply disturbing” but privately acknowledged they were authentic to The New York Times.

The USA should investigate who had access to the allegedly secret documents.

Two years ago, a major leak of secret material surfaced on Discord that was released last year. It was one of the largest revelations of government secrets in U.S. history.

On Friday, US President Joe Biden said during a visit to Germany that he has a good understanding of how and when Israel plans to respond to Iran’s recent ballistic missile attack.

The comments were the first time the US indicated that an agreement had been reached with Israel on the nature of retaliation. Mr. Biden has previously said he opposes Israel specifically targeting Iranian nuclear or oil sites.

The IDF said Sunday evening that it planned to attack financial institutions linked to Hezbollah, the Iran-backed militant group, in Beirut and other parts of Lebanon.