The White House says the US Defense Department is investigating the alleged leak of classified documents on Israel’s preparations for a potential retaliatory attack on Iran.
National security spokesperson John Kirby told reporters on Monday that the Pentagon will try to determine how the documents were made public on the internet.
The documents are believed to have been produced by two Pentagon-related agencies and are dated October 15 and 16. They assess the Israeli military’s preparations in response to Iran’s massive missile attack on October 1.
One of the documents points out that the scale and scope of an Israeli strike on Iran cannot be definitively predicted. It also says the US has “not observed indications that Israel intends to use a nuclear weapon.” Israel has not publicly confirmed that it possesses nuclear weapons.
Kirby said President Joe Biden is “deeply concerned about any leakage of classified information into the public domain that is not supposed to happen.”
Kirby added that US officials are in communication with their Israeli counterparts. He indicated that necessary measures will be taken based on the recommendations that arise from the investigative efforts.