US indicts suspected leaker of classified documents on Israel's plans to strike Iran

Government employee charged with two counts of willfully transmitting classified information

The FBI in October confirmed it was investigating who had leaked the documents. AP

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A US government employee has been indicted for leaking classified national defence information related to Israel's plans to attack Iran, according to federal court records unsealed on Wednesday.

Asif William Rahman is charged with two counts of wilfully transmitting classified information. The indictment does not provide details about the nature of the leak, but does say it occurred on or about October 17, Reuters reported.

That was around the time that a pro-Iranian Telegram account called Middle East Spectator published what appeared to be a pair of documents produced by the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency that shared information about Israel's preparations for an attack on Iran. The intelligence in the documents was based on satellite imagery from October 15-16.

In a previous statement, the Middle East Spectator said it had received the documents through an anonymous source, and that it had no connection to the original leaker nor could it verify the authenticity of the documents. The FBI in October confirmed it was investigating who had leaked the documents.

According to the indictment, which is dated November 7, investigators believe the leak took place in Cambodia. Mr Rahman was arrested in that country on Tuesday and is expected to make an initial appearance in a federal court in Guam on Thursday, before he is transferred to stand trial in Virginia.

It was not immediately known whether Mr Rahman had a lawyer or which federal agency employed him, but officials say he had top-secret security clearance. The New York Times reported he worked for the CIA.