US President Donald Trump speaks with reporters after landing at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland.
CIA was skeptical of ‘Israeli’ intel on Iranian plot that led to Trump switching planes: report
Note: AI technology was used to generate this article’s audio.
CIA analysts expressed skepticism over ‘Israeli’ intelligence on an Iranian assassination plot that prompted President Donald Trump to secretly switch planes while leaving Turkey last month, according to a Washington Post report citing current and former US officials.
‘Israel’ relayed the threat information to the CIA ahead of Trump’s July 8 departure from a NATO summit in Ankara.
Agency analysts did not find the intelligence compelling and conveyed their doubts to Trump administration officials.
One official described the reports as “Israeli-derived, not U.S.-generated, and viewed as low confidence.”
Despite the skepticism, the Secret Service and White House proceeded with extraordinary precautions.
Trump publicly boarded the legacy Air Force One in view of cameras, then was covertly transferred via an airport catering truck to a smaller Air Force C-32A military aircraft that flew him and a small group of aides onward, effectively using the larger plane as a decoy.
“The Secret Service has had three near misses with this president, so they’re not taking any chances,” one official told the Post.
“They did what they had to do.” A former official added that the episode “fit a broader pattern of Israeli intelligence reporting that some officials see as designed as much to shape presidential decision-making as to inform it.”
Earlier reporting indicated the ‘Israeli’ information pointed to Iranian proxies discussing the use of shoulder-fired missiles against the presidential aircraft.
US officials later gathered additional intelligence but assessed the scheme as difficult to execute given security perimeters and a lack of confirmed evidence that the required weapons were in place in Ankara.
A constant stream of threats, the ongoing conflict with Iran, and the short timeline left little room for error, officials said.
Trump confirmed the plane change publicly, stating it was directed by the Secret Service.
“It’s really just up to Secret Service. I just follow what they like to do,” he told reporters.
“They wanted me to go on a different flight, a different plane, equal safety. … I do what they say.”
