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Asif William Rahman

Asif William Rahman was arrested by the FBI in Cambodia and made a court appearance in Guam on 14 November 2024, during which prosecutors requested his removal from the US territory, according to legal filings in the case. He was charged with leaking classified information prior to Israel’s planned missile attack on Iran in October 2024. Rahman was indicted days earlier in US court in Alexandria, Virginia on two counts of disclosing national defence information under the Espionage Act, and could face a lengthy prison sentence. Court documents showed that Rahman , held a Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) security clearance as part of his role working for the U.S. government, which is common for many CIA employees who handle classified material.

According to an indictment filed in the Eastern District of Virginia on Nov. 7, Rahman, on or about Oct. 17, “willfully retained” a classified document and “transmitted that document to a person not entitled to receive it”, without providing details about the nature of the leak. The New York Times reported that Rahman was employed by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). A CIA spokesperson declined to comment. News of the arrest of Rahman comes a day after a Pentagon leaker, Jack Teixeira, was sentenced in Boston to 15 years in prison for ‘significant’ violations of the Espionage Act.

According to the indictment dated November 7, investigators believe the leak occurred in Cambodia. According to the indictment, the leak is believed to have occurred on October 17, around the time the pro-Iranian Telegram account Middle East Spectator posted documents relating to Israeli preparations for an attack on Iran, based on satellite imagery. Although the Middle East Spectator account said it received the documents from an anonymous source and could not verify their authenticity, investigations indicate that the leak occurred in Cambodia, where Rahman was arrested on November 12. Rahman was expected to make his first appearance in federal court on Guam on Nov. 14 before being transferred to stand trial in the Eastern District of Virginia.

The leaked documents were prepared by the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA), which analyses images and information collected by US spy satellites. The NGA conducts work in support of secret US military operations. The documents appeared last month on a channel of the Telegram messaging app. The documents noted that Israel was still moving military assets in place to conduct a military strike in response to Iran’s blistering ballistic missile attack on October 1. Israel carried out a retaliatory attack on multiple sites in Iran in late October 2024. After the attack, Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei warned Israel and the US of “a crushing response” for actions against Iran and its allies, according to state media.

The leaked Pentagon documents included details about the transfer of ammunition and warplanes between Israeli Air Force bases, and recent air force training in preparation for the attack. No potential targets for an Israeli response were mentioned. The leaked documents included an analysis conducted by the US National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency on activities carried out by the Israeli military in preparation for responding to the Iranian missile attack.

The documents began circulating on the Telegram app on a channel with close ties to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps. U.S. officials said they did not know where the documents came from and are looking into the original source of the leak. In an earlier statement, the Middle East Spectator account said it received the documents from an anonymous source, that it had no connection to the original source that leaked the documents and cannot verify their authenticity. The FBI confirmed it was investigating the identity of the leaker, saying it was “working closely with our partners in the Department of Defense and the intelligence community,” while the White House said that “President Joe Biden is deeply concerned about the leaks.”

The FBI investigates violations of the Espionage Act, which prohibits the unauthorized retention of defense-related information that might harm the United States or aid a foreign enemy. The US House of Representatives held a secret session on the leak of intelligence information, announcing the opening of an investigation into the circumstances of the leak.