The United States has reportedly raised its counterintelligence threat level for Israel to the highest category, according to American media reports on Saturday.
Citing US officials, NBC News reported that the Pentagon’s Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) assessed Israel’s “ability to conduct human espionage and technical collection” as being at a “critical level”.
The decision is said to have been driven by concerns over alleged attempts by Israel to spy on senior US officials and access sensitive internal deliberations within the Trump administration, particularly relating to Middle East conflicts.
The New York Times also reported claims of Israeli efforts to monitor top officials, including President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby.
Tensions between the two allies are reportedly increasing following joint US-Israel strikes on Iran earlier this year, which escalated regional conflict.
Media reports further suggest that relations between President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have become strained in recent months.
Neither the Pentagon nor Israeli officials have publicly confirmed the allegations reported by US media outlets.
