American intelligence analysts initially expressed strong skepticism regarding an Iranian assassination threat directed at President Donald Trump that had been passed along by Israeli authorities, according to current and former US officials who spoke to The Washington Post on Wednesday.
The Israeli warning ultimately triggered a highly unusual covert operation to secretly transport the president out of Turkey using a secondary military aircraft.
Israeli officials originally transmitted details of the alleged plot to the CIA, where agency analysts evaluated the data as unconvincing and communicated those reservations to Trump administration representatives.
Characterizing the credibility of the report, one official described the threat assessments as “Israeli-derived, not US-generated, and viewed as low confidence."
These internal doubts regarding an immediate danger add fresh context to the White House's decision on July 8 to obscure Trump's movement as he departed a NATO conference in Ankara, Turkey.
Initial security questions focused on whether a newly acquired Boeing 747-8 presented by Qatar possessed adequate defensive capabilities to carry the president through a hazardous environment. Consequently, Trump boarded the standard Air Force One 747 in Ankara. However, in a secret secondary step, he exited that jet and was transported via an airport catering vehicle to a US Air Force C-32A, which flew him and a small group of aides to the United Kingdom.
When asked on Wednesday about the specific threat warnings and how American agencies interpreted them, White House representatives refrained from addressing the intelligence directly.
“As the President has said, he has faced numerous threats on his life, including ones from Iran, and every measure is taken to ensure his safety," a US official said in a statement provided to The Washington Post on the condition of anonymity due to the sensitive subject matter.
“The United States Secret Service’s core mission is protecting the President, which they achieved."
The CIA declined to issue a statement, while the Israeli Embassy in Washington did not respond immediately to inquiries seeking additional information.
Despite the internal skepticism surrounding the Israeli intelligence, the Secret Service and White House leadership concluded that precautionary measures were necessary. One US official explained that the elaborate transfer protocol in Ankara was executed out of extreme caution.
“The Secret Service has had three near misses with this president, so they’re not taking any chances," the official noted, adding, “They did what they had to do."
Israeli intelligence sharing regarding the Iranian threat was first reported last month by The Wall Street Journal.
Addressing the secret flight publicly for the first time on Tuesday evening, Trump stated that the Secret Service directed the aircraft change.
“It’s really just up to Secret Service. I just follow what they like to do," Trump remarked to reporters, stating, “They wanted me to go on a different flight, a different plane, equal safety. … I do what they say."