Drones detected above Washington DC Army base where Pete Hegseth and Marco Rubio live, report says
According to the report, drones were detected over the Army base in Washington, D.C., where Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth live. Washington Post.
U.S. officials have not determined where they came from, but have said multiple drones have appeared over Fort Lesley J. McNair overnight in the past 10 days.
That triggered a meeting at the White House on how to respond and whether security measures should be increased.
The military is currently operating on high alert due to the war the US and Israel have been waging in Iran for the past three weeks.
Drones over Fort McNair, located along the Anacostia River, said some officials were considering whether to relocate Rubio and Hegseth, two people familiar told the Post.
So far Rubio and Hegseth have not moved. It is known that they have been living in ‘Generals Row’ on the base since October.
Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell declined to talk about drones.
“The department cannot comment on the secretary’s actions for security reasons, and reporting on such actions is grossly irresponsible,” he said in a statement to the Post.
Over the past 10 days, drones have been spotted at Fort Lesley J. McNair in Washington, DC. This is where Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth live
US officials considered whether to relocate Rubio and Hegseth for their own safety
No senior national security officials have been dismissed so far. Both men have been living at Fort McNair since at least October
Fort McNair is home to the National Defense University and some of the Pentagon’s most senior military officials.
Historically, it has not hosted political leaders, but some Trump officials have cited security concerns as reasons for moving to various bases.
Outgoing Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has moved into the Coast Guard commander’s home at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling. Atlantic reported.
Fort McNair is also conveniently located near Capitol Hill, the White House and the Pentagon.
The apparent drone threat in Washington comes after Tampa’s MacDill Air Force Base, home to U.S. Central Command, was placed on lockdown twice this week. U.S. Central Command leads military operations in Iran.
The first lockdown at MacDill occurred Monday when a suspicious package was delivered to the visitor center. The second occurred Wednesday and involved a security incident that left the base under a shelter-in-place order for hours.
On Tuesday, the State Department told all US diplomatic staff worldwide to ‘immediately’ assess their security in the face of ‘the ongoing and evolving situation in the Middle East and the potential for spillover effects,’ according to an internal memo obtained by the Post.
Drone threats became more common after President Donald Trump ordered the strike that killed Iranian general Qasem Soleimani in 2020, according to U.S. officials.
Drone threats to various US officials, including President Donald Trump, have increased since the killing of Iranian general Qasem Soleimani by a US strike in 2020
During Trump’s 2024 campaign, Secret Service agents frequently encountered unidentified drones.
That September, Trump was informed that Iran wanted to assassinate him and that there were multiple teams in the country to do so.
Officials also told Trump there was no evidence that Iran was linked to the attempts on his life in Butler, Pennsylvania, and at his golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida.
Iran’s threats have reached former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and former National Security Advisor John Bolton, leading foreign policy voices in the early Trump administration.
Iran blamed them for the killing of Soleimani, leading the Biden administration to expand the government’s security protection. Trump withdrew their security last year.
