Israel’s proxy war with Iran was dealt a blow earlier this week when US documents detailed plans for a strike against the country leaked.

One name quickly appeared on the lips of Israeli intelligence sources after the incident – ​​Ariane Tabatabai.

Israeli intelligence insiders pointed out to The Post how the Iranian-born Pentagon official was previously named as part of an alleged covert influence campaign run by Tehran in October 2023. Republicans have gone so far as to call her a spy.

However, Tabatabai is still employed by US intelligence services – which have categorically denied that she had anything to do with the leak.

The Israeli sources – sting about having a potential retaliatory strike against Iran for its October 1 ballistic missile attack on Israel leaked by his closest ally – remain skeptical.

An Israeli intelligence official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The Post: “If she did, it will be tracked down.”

The same official added: “US intelligence is far too embedded in our own intelligence community to ensure that our classified information is adequately protected.”

Senior policy adviser Tabatabai previously appeared to be a willing recruit in one operation run by Tehran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairsas reported by news site Semafor in September 2023.

“She has been suspected of collaborating with the Islamic regime in the past,” a US-based Iran expert told The Post. “There were some calls for her to be stripped of her security clearance.”

Tabatabai also happened to work as a key aide to Robert Malley, the now-suspended Iranian envoy said to have ties to the bloodthirsty Iranian regime, led by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

He was discreetly placed on unpaid leave last year in connection with alleged mishandling of “protected material”.

At the time, Tabatabai was allowed to keep her $153,454-a-year job.

Lately she has been promoted within the Ministry of Defencewho rises from Chief of Staff to Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations to Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Force Training and Education.

The Jerusalem Post described Tabatabai as an “official with alleged Iran ties amid leak probe and spying allegations”.

However, the Pentagon claims that Tabatabai is not suspected in the latest leak. During an October 22 press briefing, Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder stated, “The FBI is investigating the alleged leak of classified documents and is working closely with the Department of Defense and the Secret Service.”

After Ryder was specifically asked about Tabatabai, he responded “… the officer referred to is not a subject of interest.”

Tabatabai did not respond to calls for comment from The Post.

The Iran expert echoed the Israeli source and pointed out how a number of people with security clearances could be behind the leak.

“There has been a lack of oversight over (several people) involved in Iran,” the expert said.

In addition to causing heat across Israel and the United States, according to the Israeli insider, the leak—regardless of who is behind it—served an important short-term advantage for Iran because it “derailed our planned attack.”

The Iran expert added that there are broader downsides to the leak beyond a single incident: “The Islamic regime is not only antagonizing Israel. Iran has also become the number one enemy of US security interests. It is against the West. This is a topic that we should be very , very careful with.”