U.S. intelligence has found that Iran has “substantially increased” its efforts to target American personnel, with lethal plots against U.S. citizens reaching “advanced stages” in the Middle East and other countries, according to a memo from Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton to Secretary of State Marco Rubio that was first reported by Axios.
The one-page memo, dated Oct. 23 and marked unclassified, warned Rubio that “the lethal plotting efforts by the Iranians against U.S. citizens have reached advanced stages in both the Middle East and certain other countries,” according to Axios, NBC News and the BBC, which all reported its contents. A U.S. official confirmed the memo’s authenticity, ABC News and NBC News reported.
🚨 NOW: Marco Rubio has received a report that Iranian assassination plots against US officials overseas are RAMPING UP into "ADVANCED STAGES"
Rubio HIMSELF was just overseas pushing hard for America first 🙏🏻
The midterms are a little more than 1 week away. I hope Iran realizes… pic.twitter.com/SX7hpkxWEy
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) October 24, 2026
Intelligence chief wants the warning shared wider
Clayton told Rubio the risk is “relevant to more individuals than are currently cleared to receive this information,” according to NBC News. He wrote that his office “will make every effort to downgrade as much intelligence as possible so you can share it with State Department personnel at your discretion,” NBC News reported.
Axios reported that the memo does not identify specific targets, the countries outside the Middle East that are involved, or the nature of the plots. The underlying intelligence has already been shared with senior State Department officials, according to Axios, and ABC News reported that senior members of Rubio’s staff had been briefed.
Embassies pull back staff
U.S. officials say the intelligence is one reason the State Department is drawing down personnel at several American embassies in the region, according to Axios. Earlier this week, the department ordered family members and nonessential staff to leave the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh and consulates in Jeddah and Dhahran, Axios reported. On Friday, it ordered further staff reductions at embassies in the United Arab Emirates, Lebanon, Qatar and Jordan, according to a U.S. official cited by Axios and a State Department official cited by NBC News.
“When it comes to our staffing at embassies, we constantly evaluate new information about the security environment,” a U.S. official said, according to ABC News, NBC News and the BBC. The official added that the threat of attacks by Iran-backed militants in Yemen and “Iranian terror plots targeting U.S. officials are informing our decisions on staffing adjustments” for embassies on restricted status in the region.
The BBC reported that the ordered departure from Saudi Arabia followed escalating attacks on that country by Iran-backed militants in Yemen over the past month. U.S. officials also fear those attacks could spread to other countries in the region, according to Axios.
Military drawdown and options for Trump
The warning comes days after sources told NBC News that the U.S. military has been quietly scaling back its troop presence at bases across the Middle East. NBC News reported that those moves mirror drawdowns the Pentagon and the State Department ordered around the start of the war with Iran in February.
Among the military options presented to President Trump in recent weeks are major strikes on the tunnels or entrances of Iran’s nuclear facilities, or on its strategic islands, including Kharg Island, which handles most of Iran’s oil production, and Qeshm in the Strait of Hormuz, according to officials who spoke with NBC News.
The memo puts a sharp point on the danger facing American diplomats as the conflict drags on. It also underscores why the administration is moving its people out of harm’s way first, while the intelligence community works to get the warning into the hands of every official who may be at risk.
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- Original post: Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) on X, Oct 24, 2026
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