Zvi Bar’el
Haaretz, July 17, 2023
“Israeli sources leaked information about American intentions to sign a “mini-deal,” or a limited agreement, with Iran, to replace the full nuclear agreement. And lo, shortly after … comes Iran International, known for its cozy relations with several senior Israeli figures, who reports Malley’s suspension, allegedly for mishandling classified information.”
When exactly was Robert Malley, the U.S. special envoy for Iran, placed on an unpaid leave of absence? What are the precise reasons for revoking his security clearance? In a long and scolding missive sent to Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Rep. Michael McCaul, chairman of the U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, demanded to know.
The Republican representative’s letter presented an ultimatum: Blinken must announce preparations no later than Monday evening for a classified briefing of the Committee to be held on or before July 26th; if it fails to do so, “I am prepared to request testimony on this matter in a classified hearing and to compel the appearance of requested witnesses should they refuse to appear voluntarily.”News of the suspension of Malley, the head of the U.S. negotiating team for a “new” nuclear deal with Iran, was first published on June 29th on the Iran International website, which noted that Malley had not been participating in meetings and discussions regarding Iran for some time. This forced State Department Spokesman Matthew Miller to confirm the report, without saying when and why exactly Malley had been removed from office.
Official announcements stated that the suspension followed orders from the State Department’s security department, which claimed that Malley had allegedly done something to compromise the rules of confidentiality, indicating that he passed classified information – whether in the form of documents or verbally – to someone who was not authorized to know it.
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