Ariane Tabatabai, a senior employee in the Pentagon, is suspected of allegedly leaking documents consisting of Israel's plans for a retaliatory strike on Iran, Sky News Arabia reported on Tuesday citing a Pentagon official.
The official explained that the Intelligence and Armed Services Committees committees in Congress had been informed of the suspect's identity due to her "top security clearance that gives her the right to view highly classified information."
According to the report, the Iranian-American suspect, who has not been convicted yet, works as the director of the office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations/Low-Intensity Conflict.
The staffer in question was brought on by the Biden administration as part of the US negotiating team in nuclear negotiations with Iran but later left due to disagreements with the team leader. After leaving the team she remained in the Department of Defense as a senior policy advisor. Various Jewish publications have in the past accused the suspect of being an Iranian agent.
Arutz Sheva posted an article in August by Melanie Phillips in which she said: "Shortly before the Oct. 7 pogrom, Tabatabei was named as an agent of influence for Iran—at the heart of the U.S. government and with the highest level of security clearance—as part of an Iran Experts Initiative created by Iranian officials to bolster Tehran’s position on global security issues within the Beltway."
"She had been infiltrated into the U.S. State Department by Robert Malley, who was the point man on Iran under both the Obama and Biden administrations until he was removed in June 2023 following a still unexplained “mishandling of classified materials.”
On Tuesday, the FBI announced that it is investigating the leak of Israel's plans to retaliate for the October 1st missile strike on the country by Iran.
“The FBI is investigating the alleged leak of classified documents and working closely with our partners in the Department of Defense and Intelligence Community,” the FBI said in a statement. “As this is an ongoing investigation, we have no further comment.”
When asked about the matter and if anyone in the department has had their security clearance limited as a result of the investigation, Pentagon Press Secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder stated: "This investigation is in its first few days and it's important to let the investigation run its course. To my knowledge, this official is not a subject of interest and the department remains fully committed to supporting the investigation."