LLAW’s All Things Nuclear #786, Sunday, (10/20/2024)
End Nuclear Insanity Before Nuclear Insanity Ends Humanity”
Stock Photo of Iran’s Nuclear Facility
LLAW’s NUCLEAR VIEWS, ISSUES & COMMENTS, Sunday, (10/20/2024)
Sundays almost always seem to be filled with news stories that are better off being left till Monday unless there is no speculation at all involved in the article(s)’ facts and information. This article leaves more questions than answers, but bears following up on as soon as possible in an effort to discover what comes next. How the ‘leak’ occurred and from where and whether the stolen documents contained nuclear attack information is, of course, seriously important. I’m sure we will learn more in tomorrow’s LLAW’s NUCLEAR WORLD’S NEWS . . . ~llaw
Leaked documents show US intelligence on Israel’s plans to attack Iran, sources say
By Natasha Bertrand and Alex Marquardt, CNN
3 minute read
Updated 7:34 AM EDT, Sun October 20, 2024
CNN —
The US is investigating a leak of highly classified US intelligence about Israel’s plans for retaliation against Iran, according to three people familiar with the matter. One of the people familiar confirmed the documents’ authenticity.
The leak is “deeply concerning,” a US official told CNN.
The documents, dated October 15 and 16, began circulating online Friday after being posted on Telegram by an account called “Middle East Spectator.”
They are marked top secret and have markings indicating they are meant to be seen only by the US and its “Five Eyes” allies — Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.
Related live-storyThe latest on Hamas leader’s death and war in the Middle East
They describe preparations Israel appears to be making for a strike against Iran. One of the documents, which says it was compiled by the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, says the plans involve Israel moving munitions around.
Another document says it is sourced to the National Security Agency and outlines Israeli air force exercises involving air-to-surface missiles, also believed to be in preparation for a strike on Iran. CNN is not quoting directly from or showing the documents.
A US official said the investigation is examining who had access to the alleged Pentagon document. Any such leak would automatically trigger an investigation by the FBI alongside the Pentagon and US intelligence agencies. The FBI declined to comment.
The leak comes at an extremely sensitive moment in US-Israeli relations and is bound to anger the Israelis, who have been preparing to strike Iran in response to Iran’s missile barrage on October 1. One of the documents also suggests something that Israel has always declined to confirm publicly: that the country has nuclear weapons. The document says the US has not seen any indications that Israel plans to use a nuclear weapon against Iran.
“If it is true that Israeli tactical plans to respond to Iran’s attack on October 1 have been leaked, it is a serious breach,” said Mick Mulroy, former deputy assistant secretary of defense for the Middle East and a retired CIA officer.
Mulroy added that “the future coordination between the US and Israel could be challenged as well. Trust is a key component in the relationship, and depending on how this was leaked that trust could be eroded.”
Related articleUS officials expect Israel’s counterattack on Iran will come before US Election Day
The National Security Council referred CNN to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the Pentagon for comment. The Pentagon and National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency declined to comment. CNN has reached out to the National Security Agency for comment.
Another US official said that “these two documents are bad, but not horrible. The concern is if there are more.”
It is not clear how the documents became public, nor whether they were hacked or deliberately leaked. The US is already on high alert about Iranian hacking campaigns — US intelligence agencies said in August that Iran had hacked documents belonging to Donald Trump’s campaign.
Axios first reported on the leaked documents Saturday.
A major leak of US intelligence last year also strained the US’ relationships with allies and partners, including South Korea and Ukraine, after a 21-year-old Air National Guardsman posted highly classified information on the social media platform Discord.
This story has been updated with additional information.
CNN’s Evan Perez and Katie Bo Lillis contributed to this report.
ABOUT THE FOLLOWING ACCESS TO “LLAW’S ALL THINGS NUCLEAR” RELATED MEDIA”:
There are 7 categories, with the latest addition, (#7) being a Friday weekly roundup of IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) global nuclear news stories. Also included is a bonus non-nuclear category for news about the Yellowstone caldera and other volcanic and caldera activity around the world that play an important role in humanity’s lives. The feature categories provide articles and information about ‘all things nuclear’ for you to pick from, usually with up to 3 links with headlines concerning the most important media stories in each category, but sometimes fewer and occasionally even none (especially so with the Yellowstone Caldera). The Categories are listed below in their usual order:
All Things Nuclear
Nuclear Power
Nuclear Power Emergencies
Nuclear War
Nuclear War Threats
Yellowstone Caldera (Note: There is one Yellowstone Caldera bonus story available in this evening’s Post.)
IAEA Weekly News (Friday’s only)
Whenever there is an underlined link to a Category media news story, if you press or click on the link provided, you no longer have to cut and paste to your web browser, since this Post’s link will take you directly to the article in your browser.
A current Digest of major nuclear media headlines with automated links is listed below by nuclear Category (in the above listed order). If a Category heading does not appear in the daily news Digest, it means there was no news reported from this Category today. Generally, the three best articles in each Category from around the nuclear world(s) are Posted. Occasionally, if a Post is important enough, it may be listed in multiple Categories.
TODAY’S NUCLEAR WORLD’S NEWS, Sunday, (10/20/2024)
All Things Nuclear
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Leaked documents show US intelligence on Israel's plans to attack Iran, sources say - CNN
CNN
The US is investigating a leak of highly classified US intelligence about Israel's plans for retaliation against Iran, according to three people ...
Putin Draws a 'Red Line': Russia Will Never Permit Ukraine to Go Nuclear, 'Not Possible Secretly'
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Nuclear War Threats
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Opinion: Russia's Clownish Convoy of Threats - Kyiv Post
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... threats and the specter of nuclear war in its arsenal. In reality ... Putin and his propagandists are betting that the threat of nuclear war will ...
The Navy's Los Angeles-Class Nuclear Attack Submarine Dilemma | The National Interest
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... threat to the rival navies of China, Russia, and others. Submarines vs. Aircraft Carriers. A Los Angeles-class attack submarine costs around $1 ...
Iran's FM believes he can wage war against Israel and not receive any pushback - analysis
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A necessary response will be given to any attack on Iran's nuclear facilities or any similar attack.” Threats to the US. Araghchi also threatened ..
Yellowstone Caldera
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Mag. 1.8 quake - New Zealand on Sunday, Oct 20, 2024, at 11:11 pm (Auckland time)
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Its vast caldera has an amazing moonscape and several ... Yellowstone quakes · Yellowstone quakes · Latest earthquakes under Yellowstone volcano