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Asif William Rahman, 34, Pleads Guilty to Leaking Israel's Strike Plans on Iran, Faces Up to 20 Years

Jan 17, 2025, 08:05 PM

Asif William Rahman, a 34-year-old former CIA analyst who had been employed by the agency since 2016 and held a top-secret security clearance, has pleaded guilty to leaking classified documents detailing Israel's military preparations for a retaliatory strike against Iran. Rahman admitted to accessing and printing two top-secret documents on October 17, 2024, which he then photographed and transmitted to individuals not authorized to receive them. The documents, which surfaced on social media, described Israel's plans to attack Iran in response to Iran's ballistic missile attack on Israel on October 1, 2024. Rahman's actions led to a delay in Israel's planned retaliatory strike, which was eventually carried out later in October. He pleaded guilty to two counts of willful retention and transmission of classified information related to the national defense and faces up to 20 years in prison, though a plea deal suggests a sentence of 5 to 6.5 years. Sentencing is scheduled for May 15, 2025.