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CIA analyst who leaked Israel strike plan sentenced to three years

Sakshi Venkatraman
BBC News
Getty Images A soldier dressed in green stands in the desert looking at a large metal objectGetty Images
An Israeli soldier inspects remains of a missile launched by Iran into Israel on 1 October 2024

A former CIA analyst who leaked classified documents about Israel's plans to strike Iran has been sentenced to 37 months in prison.

Asif William Rahman, 34, pleaded guilty in January to two counts of willful retention and transmission of national defence information under the Espionage Act.

Authorities say that, using his high-level security clearance, Rahman printed, photographed and sent out top secret documents. They later ended up being circulated on social media.

Israel carried out air strikes on Iran last October, targeting military sites in several regions, in response to the barrage of missiles launched by Tehran weeks earlier.

"For months, this defendant betrayed the American people and the oaths he took upon entering his office by leaking some of our Nation's most closely held secrets," John Eisenberg, assistant attorney general for national security, said in a press release.

In October 2024, documents appearing to be from a Department of Defense agency were published on an Iranian-aligned Telegram .

The documents, bearing a top-secret mark, were viewable between the Five Eyes intelligence alliance, made up of the US, Britain, Canada, New Zealand and Australia.

The leaked documents are also said to have contained the US' assessment of Israeli plans ahead of the strike on Iran and the movements of military assets in preparation.

One referred to Israel's nuclear capabilities, which have never been officially acknowledged.

When asked about the leak, former President Joe Biden said he was "deeply concerned".

Israel ended up carrying out those air strikes later in the month, targeting military sites in several regions in response to missiles fired by Tehran weeks prior.

Rahman, who worked abroad, was arrested by the FBI in Cambodia and brought to the US territory of Guam to face charges.