US intelligence officials have warned that Iran has stepped up efforts to target American personnel abroad, with plots to kill Americans reaching advanced stages in the Middle East and other countries.
Jay Clayton, the director of national intelligence, set out the assessment in an unclassified memo sent on Friday to Secretary of State Marco Rubio. CIA Director John Ratcliffe was copied on the communication.
The memo did not name the countries where the alleged plots were under way or identify specific targets. It also gave no indication of whether attacks might be imminent.
The State Department has ordered non-essential personnel at the US embassy in Saudi Arabia, along with their families, to leave the country. Several other American embassies in the region have moved to restricted operations and adjusted their staffing.
The US military is also paring back its footprint in the region in response to the threat.
The warning comes after US embassies in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and other countries advised Americans last weekend to exercise caution because of Houthi attacks.
Earlier this month, a Houthi strike hit Riyadh's King Khalid Airport, killing at least a dozen people, including a US citizen, and injuring hundreds more.
The Iran-backed Houthis have carried out attacks on civilian infrastructure inside Saudi Arabia, including multiple airport attacks. They have directly attacked countries in the Persian Gulf region since the start of the Yemen civil war. Saudi Arabia has been the focus of much of the Houthi offensive because of its partnerships with the US.
US intelligence also assesses that Iran may have operatives in the US and maintains targets in Europe.
At a campaign rally in Florida on Friday, President Trump referred to a possible operation against Iran, saying: “We may do another little Epic Fury, or they'll agree.” He was invoking Epic Fury, the US military campaign launched in February.
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