US Treasury secretary moves to military base amid Iranian assassination threat

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who leads US economic sanctions against Iran, has relocated to a military base after receiving Iranian assassination threats, sources said. US authorities believe Iran's plot to assassinate senior American officials has reached a more advanced stage than before.

The New York Times reported Tuesday, citing three sources familiar with the matter, that Bessent recently left his home near Washington after receiving Iranian death threats and moved to a protected facility on a military base.

US authorities have concluded, based on threats against Bessent detected in recent weeks, that Iran is developing concrete plans to attack current and former senior American officials. However, the severity of the specific threat against Bessent has not been disclosed.

US intelligence agencies assess that Iran has limited capacity to carry out large-scale attacks on American soil or abroad, but they take seriously the possibility of targeted assassinations of specific senior officials.

Since August, Bessent has led an economic pressure campaign aimed at isolating Iran from international markets through sweeping sanctions and restrictions on trade routes. The effort has focused particularly on cutting off funding to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which holds strong sway over Iran's military and economic affairs.

The Trump administration hopes the economic pressure will force Iran to capitulate and end the war without resuming large-scale military operations. However, US intelligence agencies believe Iran's hardline leadership is determined to maintain its grip on power even at the cost of severe economic damage, making regime change through sanctions alone unlikely.

The Treasury Department said it would continue the pressure campaign despite the Iranian threats. "Secretary Bessent will not be intimidated by the threats of the Iranian regime," a Treasury spokesperson said.

Several senior officials in the Trump administration have relocated to military bases or secure facilities due to security threats. At least six did so last year, including White House Chief of Staff Stephen Miller and then-Attorney General Pam Bondi, though not all of the threats they faced were linked to Iran.

Iran has threatened to retaliate against Donald Trump and senior US officials involved in the January 2020 airstrike that killed Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani. More recently, Iran has reportedly expanded its target list to include current senior officials of the second Trump administration.