Pentagon reportedly raises Israel spying threat level to ‘critical’ amid Iran war tensions

The Pentagon’s intelligence arm has reportedly raised its counterintelligence threat assessment for Israel from “high” to “critical”, amid concerns that Israeli intelligence may be stepping up efforts to monitor senior US officials involved in internal deliberations over the war with Iran.

The change was first reported by NBC News and later by The New York Times, according to Al Jazeera, which said the reports cited unnamed current and former US officials. The Defense Intelligence Agency, or DIA, reportedly issued the upgraded assessment in recent weeks.

Concern centres on White House deliberations

The reported upgrade reflects concern inside the US defence establishment that Israel is seeking insight into the Trump administration’s internal discussions on whether to continue military operations against Iran or move towards a negotiated end to the conflict.

According to the reports, US officials believe Israel has been particularly interested in monitoring senior figures linked to Middle East and Iran policy, including Trump special envoy Steve Witkoff, Pentagon policy official Elbridge Colby and senior defence official Michael DiMino IV.

Witkoff had been a key US negotiator in nuclear-related talks before the US-Israeli attack on Iran earlier this year, while Colby and DiMino are involved in defence-policy planning.

Israel and White House deny allegations

Israel has rejected the allegations. The Israeli Embassy in Washington said the claims were false and insisted that Israel does not collect intelligence on US government officials, according to Israeli and international media reports. A White House official also denied the story, while the Pentagon declined to comment.

Al Jazeera said the US Department of Defense did not immediately respond to its request for comment, while an unnamed spokesperson told NBC and The New York Times that the reports were false.

Policy split adds to tensions

The reported intelligence concerns come as US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have publicly differed over the future course of the war with Iran.

Trump has repeatedly signalled that he wants to bring the conflict to an end, while Netanyahu has pushed for continued pressure on Tehran despite a temporary ceasefire announced in April. Fighting has largely slowed since the truce, but efforts to reach a lasting settlement have remained stalled.

US officials quoted in the reports said Israel’s alleged activity appeared to go beyond what is usually expected even among allies that maintain close intelligence ties. The New York Times reported that the DIA’s current designation for Israel now exceeds the assessed counterintelligence threat level of all US allies and even some countries with more strained relations with Washington.

Military ties under scrutiny

The allegations are likely to raise fresh questions about trust in US-Israel military and intelligence cooperation.

The two countries maintain deep defence ties, with Washington providing Israel with extensive military aid and weapons support over many years. At the same time, Congress is reportedly considering defence legislation that could deepen joint US-Israel weapons research and development.

The reported DIA move therefore comes at a sensitive moment, as Washington and Jerusalem continue to coordinate on regional security while facing growing policy differences over Iran and the wider Middle East.