US military conducts polygraph tests over alleged Iran war leaks

Photo: Collected

A classified report claiming that the United States was facing shortages of missiles and other essential munitions due to the war with Iran has been leaked to the international media, triggering a major uproar in Washington.

In an unprecedented move, polygraph, or lie-detector, tests have been conducted on 50 senior US military officials to identify who leaked the classified information to journalists.

According to The New York Times, senior military and civilian officials at the US Department of Defense, or Pentagon, underwent the tests in August. The primary objectives were to identify those involved in the leak and warn others against disclosing classified information.

The administration took the stringent measure after several reports were published about declining stocks of long-range missiles and weapons for air defense systems. Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell has made it clear that any leak of classified information related to national security is considered a very serious offense.

Meanwhile, President Donald Trump reacted angrily to reports about weapons shortages in the country. In posts on social media, he described such reports as “100 percent false” and called those responsible for leaking the information “traitors.”

Trump said the United States has sufficient and virtually unlimited stockpiles of weapons for the ongoing war as well as for any potential future conflict. He also assured that the US is currently producing new weapons at the fastest rate in its history.

Source: NDTV