- Trump flew to the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, on a new Qatari-gifted jet.
- Israel warned US intelligence of a possible Iranian missile threat toward Air Force One.
- The Secret Service secretly moved Trump to a smaller military jet as he left Turkey, using a catering cart ruse.
- Trump said he was following Secret Service instructions when asked about the development.
- CIA analysts viewed the intelligence as low confidence and uncorroborated; Turkish security found no specific plot.
- The extraordinary clandestine manoeuvre was precautionary, as US intelligence officials were about the Iranian assassination threat against Trump.
- Doubts in some quarters about the White House's decision last month, based on an uncorroborated threat, raise questions about Israeli influence on US decision-making.
- Some US intelligence officials pointed out that Tel Aviv's 'kill plot' warning was designed less to inform the US about the threat and more to influence Trump's decision-making and US policy in the region.
US President Donald Trump made a secret plane switch in Turkey last month after Israel warned of a potential Iranian missile threat to Air Force One. The Secret Service moved him to a smaller military jet during his departure from the NATO summit, citing an "abundance of caution."1234
Reports indicate that the warning about a possible Iranian assassination plot was relayed to the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)US officials expressed skepticism, stating that the intelligence was single-sourced, unverified, and considered to be of low confidence.56
Despite these doubts, the Secret Service executed the plane switch, with two senior members of Trump's Cabinet, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, remaining on the original Air Force One. The Turkish security services also investigated the matter and found no specific plot against Trump in Ankara, further complicating the narrative surrounding the alleged threat.
The situation underscores the complexities of international intelligence and the precautions taken by the US government in response to foreign threats, even when the credibility of such threats is in question.
“The CIA viewed the intelligence as low confidence and uncorroborated, while Turkish security found no specific plot. Rubio and Bessent stayed on the original Air Force One, and some officials suspect the warning aimed to influence US policy.”
