Pentagon raised Israeli spying threat on the U.S. to highest level, sources say

The Pentagon is increasingly concerned that Israel has been ramping up its spying on the United States and recently raised the counterintelligence threat level for America's top Middle East ally to the highest level, according to two U.S. officials and one former U.S. official. NBC News reported the assessment on June 5, 2026.

What the DIA assessment says

The Defense Intelligence Agency issued the new counterintelligence threat assessment in recent weeks, amid rising tensions between Israel and the United States over the way forward in the war with Iran, the officials said. The DIA posted an internal message, seen by one of the current officials, that raised the level for Israel to "critical." The designation stems from concerns inside the Pentagon that Israel is making a particular effort to surveil top U.S. officials in order to learn about the Trump administration's internal deliberations and decision-making on the conflicts in the Middle East, the officials said. One current official said the assessment includes a seven-page document with a chart and states that Israel's ability to conduct human espionage and technical collection is at a "critical level." It also identifies a series of specific incidents that heightened U.S. concerns.

Denials from Israel and the White House

A spokesperson for the Israeli Embassy in Washington said in a statement that it is "completely false" that Israel spies on the United States. "Israel does not gather intelligence on American entities, let alone US government officials," the spokesperson said. "Israel intelligence collection efforts are aimed at its enemies, not its allies. Any claims to the contrary are either misinformed or politically motivated." The Pentagon declined to comment. A White House official said, "This entire story is false and sourced to someone who doesn't have any knowledge of what's going on." The Office of the Director of National Intelligence, which oversees the DIA, did not respond to a request for comment.

Long-standing concerns about Israeli espionage

Spying between allies and adversaries is commonplace, but the current and former officials said Israel's recent efforts have gone well beyond what is typical and expected. The officials did not know whether a specific incident triggered the DIA's decision to raise the level. The United States maintains extensive counterintelligence efforts; under U.S. law the FBI has the leading role, alongside other agencies and the military. Israel has for years had a reputation for aggressive espionage even against its closest ally, and top U.S. officials often take extra care when traveling to Israel, sometimes using burner phones and speaking cautiously in hotel rooms, the officials and experts said. "They are exceedingly interested in what we are up to," said Emily Harding of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, who described Israel as having "a hyper-aggressive intelligence service." Two additional former officials said the concern at such a sensitive moment, when the two governments do not fully agree on the war with Iran, carries the risk of undermining trust between the countries.