State Department botched security clearance suspension of Iran envoy, watchdog reports

The independent watchdog for the State Department says the agency deviated from standard policy in the security clearance suspension of Biden Iran envoy Robert Malley, permitted the advisor access to classified meetings, and allowed him to continue work on sensitive issues while he was under investigation. 

The State Department Office of Inspector General report found the agency restored Robert Malley’s access to a sensitive system and failed to notify the envoy of his suspension before he likely attended a classified meetings. Access to the OpenNet system is normally off limits for employees in similar circumstances, the report found. 

According to the report, an agency official decided to restore Malley’s access to the sensitive OpenNet, which included the use of his official state.gov email. The Inspector General found one reason department officials cited for restoring access was a concern that Malley would instead use a personal email account to continue working. Yet, Malley was already under investigation, in part, doing exactly that: using a personal email for classified business, which is outside the boundaries of State Department regulations. 

You can read the report below: 

"Grossly mismanaged"

“The State Department IG’s report is disturbing and sheds light on the multiple ways the State Department grossly mismanaged Mr. Malley’s case and intentionally misled Congress. Mr. Malley, a political appointee and close associate of the secretary, was treated very differently than a civil servant or foreign service officer,” House Foreign Affairs committee Chairman Michael McCaul, R-Tex., and Senate Foreign Relations Committee Ranking Member Jim Risch, R-Idaho, said in a joint statement. 

"Among the new revelations in this report, Mr. Malley conducted sensitive government business and was allowed to utilize his official email account after his clearance was suspended. As the report noted, this was done out of fear that Mr. Malley might ‘conduct government business on a personal email account,’” the pair said. “This concern was valid because it is one of the primary things Mr. Malley did to get his clearance suspended in the first place.”

Malley, who served as a key Iran adviser in the Biden Administration and reported directly to Secretary of State Antony Blinken, announced in June 2023 that he had been notified that his security clearance was under review, but that he did not know the reason at the time. 

“The inspector general found that State Department officials largely followed standard procedures in the case of the Special Envoy for Iran.  The inspector general also made five recommendations in this case. The Department agrees with all five and will begin taking steps to implement them into our standard processes, to the extent we haven’t already done so," a State Department spokesperson told Just the News.

Hostile cyber actor

Later, the FBI began investigating Malley for potentially mishandling classified information that was seized by a foreign actor. The information was reportedly compromised after Malley moved the material to his personal email, Politico reported in May. That material was allegedly stolen by a a "hostile cyber actor,” according to GOP lawmakers. 

According to the OIG report, it is not yet clear if the Justice Department plans to bring any charges against the former Iran envoy. 

Malley has denied any wrongdoing in the case. The report found no evidence that Malley handled any classified information after he was notified of his suspension, the report concludes. 

The Inspector General also found that the State Department failed to properly notify the watchdog after Malley’s security clearance suspension, which is required by law. 

"Lack of candor"

The State Department began its investigation shortly after the Senate raised questions about why Malley did not show up for a classified briefing with elected officials in May 2023. The administration reportedly told Congress that the envoy was on extended personal leave, but did not immediately inform Senators of the security clearance suspension, according to the Washington Free Beacon. 

By June, the investigation into Malley became public and it was transferred to the FBI. 

"The Department’s failure to inform Congress of this matter demonstrates at best a lack of candor, and at worst represents deliberate and potentially unlawful misinformation," Chairman McCaul wrote in a June 2023 letter to the State Department.