Israel postponed its counteroffensive against Iran due to leaked Pentagon documents

The leak of classified Pentagon documents has postponed Israeli's counteroffensive against Iran following the Iranian attack involving nearly 200 ballistic missiles launched against Israel earlier this October, according to a report in the British newspaper The Times on Thursday.

The report is based on statements from a source familiar with Israel-s response plans after the leak surfaced on a pro-Iranian Telegram channel before spreading on X. 

The classified documents contained details of the Israel Defense Forces' (IDF) plans for a ballistic missile offensive against Iran, allowing Tehran to better prepare for the attack.

However, as a result of the leak, Israel was forced to modify its strategy and certain elements of the counteroffensive, according to Israeli intelligence sources, as reported by the Israeli news portal Ynet. 

According to a report published by Sky News Arabia, the person responsible for leaking the classified documents is Iranian-American Ariane Tabatabai, a Pentagon advisor. However, the Defense Department headquarters denied the report.

Patrick Ryder, a Pentagon spokesman, stated that Tabatabai is not under investigation and that the inquiry is in its early stages.

Who is Ariane Tabatabai?

Tabatabai was raised in Tehran. She majored in international geopolitical studies. Before she started working for the U.S. administration, she advocated negotiations with the Iranian regime rather than direct confrontation.

When she went to work for the State Department, she became part of the team working with President Joe Biden-s special convoy for Iran as well as nuclear deal negotiator Robert Malley, who was later removed from his position following a journalistic investigation that highlighted his ties to Iran. 

Tabatabai nevertheless remains employed with the federal government. The journalistic investigations focused on her membership in an informal group called the Initiative of Experts of Iran (IEI), which promotes views aligned with the Iranian regime. This program, developed by Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, aims to enhance the public relations of the Ayatollahs' government.

Tabatabai had direct lines of communication with members of the Iranian Islamist government. She has not commented on the investigations by Semafor and Iran International. However, other individuals named in the alleged IEI lists have stated that the program is intended as a diplomatic outreach initiative, not an intelligence operation.