U.S. intelligence officials have warned Secretary of State Marco Rubio that Iranian plans to attack Americans have reached “advanced stages,” according to The New York Times.
In a headline report, the Times said Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton sent Rubio a memo warning of a significant increase in Iranian efforts to target U.S. personnel.
The memo stated that intelligence agencies had received information indicating that Iran had “substantially increased efforts to target U.S. personnel.”
The lethal plotting efforts by the Iranians against U.S. citizens have reached advanced stages in both the Middle East and certain other countries.
U.S. officials told the Times that agencies now assess the threat against Americans in the Middle East and elsewhere to be at its highest level since the war with Iran began in February.
The intelligence reportedly includes potential targets outside the Middle East, including in Europe. One official added that Iran’s ambitions to carry out attacks exceeded its ability to do so.
The warning adds to security concerns surrounding Saudi Arabia, where WWE is scheduled to stage Crown Jewel in Riyadh on November 7.
As reported on Wednesday, nonessential U.S. Embassy personnel and their families have been ordered to leave Saudi Arabia. The Times now reports that the drawdown was directly connected to recent intelligence concerning Iranian attack plans.
Despite the security situation, TKO executive chair Ari Emanuel said on Friday that Crown Jewel remained scheduled to proceed.
Right now, everything’s still set.
Emanuel said TKO has a team monitoring developments daily and that the company could move an event if circumstances required it.
Friday’s edition of WWE SmackDown included multiple promotional spots for Crown Jewel.
