American embassies tighten security as Iran threat warnings intensify ahead of U.S. midterm elections

U.S. embassy officials were on heightened alert around the Middle East as new reports said Iran is in the "advanced stages" of planning attacks against Americans Friday. A memo from Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton said agencies received intelligence that Iran has "substantially increased efforts to target U.S. personnel" in the region, according to a New York Times report , and that the threats applied to "certain other countries" as well. The warnings come after the U.S. ordered non-emergency government employees to leave Saudi Arabia this week, as attacks from the Iran-backed Houthis have worsened and the broader war between the U.S. and Tehran nears its eighth month.