The US Department of Homeland Security identified the US-Israeli war with Iran as a potential motive for the man accused of attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump and senior members of his administration at a White House reporters’ gala last month, according to an intelligence report sent to state and local law enforcement nationwide and other federal agencies.
The report, a preliminary assessment by the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Intelligence and Analysis dated April 27, assessed that the suspect Cole Allen had “multiple social and political grievances.”
It concluded that the Iran conflict “may have contributed to his decision to conduct the attack,” citing social media posts from Allen that criticised US actions in the war.
The assessment sheds new light on the US government’s search for a motive in the foiled attack on the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on April 25.
Its conclusions, while preliminary, offer the most definitive evidence to date that the Iran conflict, which has killed thousands in the Middle East and rattled the global economy, could have been a trigger.
The report, marked as a “Critical Incident Note,” was obtained through open records requests by the transparency nonprofit Property of the People and shared with Reuters.
A DHS spokesperson declined to comment on the contents of the intelligence assessment.
“These reports notify our partners of the latest available information following significant incidents that have impacts to homeland security,” the spokesperson said.
The FBI declined to comment and the US Justice Department did not respond to requests for comment.
On Tuesday, the US Justice Department added a charge of assault on a federal officer, accusing Allen of firing at a US Secret Service agent at a security checkpoint, in addition to attempted assassination, discharge of a firearm during a crime of violence, and illegal transportation of a firearm and ammunition across state lines. He has not yet entered a plea.
US officials have so far said little about Allen’s alleged motivation, pointing only to an email Allen sent to relatives on the night of the attack.
The message, which officials have called a manifesto, expressed anger at the administration and referred to his desire to target the “traitor” giving a speech, without mentioning Trump by name.
In court documents, prosecutors have alleged that Allen “disagreed” with Trump politically and “wanted to ‘fight back’ against government policies and decisions that he found morally objectionable.”
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