Biden ‘concerned’ about release of files on Israel’s plans to strike Iran

White House says the apparent leak of secret US assessments on Israel’s preparations for the attack is ‘unacceptable’.

The White House says United States President Joe Biden is “deeply concerned” about the apparent leak of US government documents outlining intelligence assessments about Israel’s preparations to attack Iran.

Washington is not sure how the documents posted on the social media platform Telegram last week were made public, White House spokesperson John Kirby told reporters on Monday.

It is unclear whether the files were leaked or hacked.

“The president remains deeply concerned about any leakage of classified information into the public domain. That is not supposed to happen and it’s unacceptable when it does,” Kirby said.

The classified documents include an analysis of satellite imagery of Israeli military activities.

The files said the Israeli military “handled” air-launched ballistic missiles – which are fired from an aircraft – and conducted covert drone activities earlier this month “almost certainly” for a strike on Iran.

But the assessment, which appears to have been prepared by the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, added that the analysis cannot “definitively predict the scale and scope”.

Several US media outlets cited anonymous US officials saying the secret documents seem authentic.

The files first appeared on the Telegram channel Middle East Spectator, which publishes news and commentary about the region. The account shares messages that support Iran and its allies, but has refuted claims of ties to the government in Tehran.

Investigation underway

US House Speaker Mike Johnson confirmed on Sunday that an investigation into how the documents became public is “underway, ” saying he will receive a briefing on the matter.

The US has seen major leaks of secret government documents in recent years, including classified military intelligence assessments that surfaced online in 2023, with the release being blamed on a US National Guard airman.

On Friday, Biden expressed optimism about the chances of containing tensions between Iran and Israel, saying that there is an “opportunity” to stop the back-and-forth attacks between the two countries.

Israel is widely believed to be preparing an assault against Iran, and Tehran has vowed to respond to any new attack. “I am aware of how Israel plans to respond and the timing,” Biden told reporters on a trip to Germany last week, but refrained from elaborating.

Biden has not revealed any diplomatic initiative to stop the conflict from spiralling.

Iran had fired a barrage of missiles at military targets in Israel on October 1 in retaliation for the killing of Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and the assassinations of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and an Iranian general in Beirut.

Biden previously suggested that he opposes an Israeli attack on Iranian nuclear or oil facilities.

Asked on Friday whether he understands how and when Israel will respond, Biden said: “Yes and yes.”

Anybody with knowledge or understanding of "how and when Israel was going to attack Iran", and/or providing the means and backing for such folly, should logically be held accountable for any possible causality.https://t.co/aLyJDw1NGp

— Seyed Abbas Araghchi (@araghchi) October 18, 2024

His comments sparked anger in Iran.

“Anybody with knowledge or understanding of ‘how and when Israel was going to attack Iran’, and/or providing the means and backing for such folly, should logically be held accountable for any possible causality,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi wrote on social media in response to Biden’s remarks.

On Monday, Iran’s Tasnim news agency quoted a military source as saying that the Iranian response to any Israeli attack would be “decisive” and “beyond the estimates of Zionists”.

Earlier this month, the Biden administration expanded sanctions on Iran’s oil and petrochemical sectors over the missile launches against Israel.

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Al Jazeera and news agencies