Explainer
Why has the US Treasury Secretary moved onto a military base?
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Scott Bessent has left his home in Washington for a military base. People familiar with the matter say it was for safety reasons, partly prompted by media reports that helped identify his address, including a Wall Street Journal aerial view of his Georgetown house.
Washington
The US and Israel attacked Iran on 28 February, and Bessent has led the economic pressure campaign since August. An intelligence memo warned of advanced Iranian plots, but US officials judge Iran's capacity for large-scale attacks at home as limited. The move came in early November.
- 28 FebruaryUS and Israel attack Iran
- August 2026Economic pressure campaign begins
- November 2026Bessent moves to military base
Andreas Krieg of King's College London sees a pattern: I think we are witnessing a deliberate expansion of Iran's campaign of retaliation beyond the Middle East. How serious the threats are remains unclear, and Iran has denied plotting attacks on US soil.
“I think we are witnessing a deliberate expansion of Iran's campaign of retaliation beyond the Middle East.”
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US Treasury Secretary Bessent moves to military base over Iranian threatsRead the article
Based on reports by
- AP NEWSBessent moves to a military base over safety concerns, an AP source says
- vrtnws.beUS Treasury Secretary moved to military base after threats from Iran
- Al Jazeera OnlineBessent's relocation: From US to EU, is Iran bringing war to Western soil?
- gelderlander.nlIranian threat is so great that US minister must move with family to heavily guarded military base
- Deutsche WelleFear of Iranian attack in the US: Bessent moved to military base
- 7sur7Threatened by Iran, an American minister must move with his family to a military base