The State Department's internal watchdog has launched an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the suspension of US Iran envoy, Robert Malley.
The Office of Inspector General (OIG), Diana Shaw, launched the investigation in addition to ongoing Federal Bureau of Investigation investigations into Biden’s Iran man, which could lead to a more formal investigation, according to a report by Politico.
Iran International first reported that Malley was suspended from his position as US envoy for Iran on June 29, with his security clearance suspended while he was under investigation relating to his handling of classified documents.
The Involvement of the FBI was also reported, although until now no official details have been announced, except that Malley is on “unpaid leave.”
The suspension had been kept under wraps since it took place on April 22, with Malley given a more limited scope of work before the affair unraveled two months later.
Shaw’s investigation was prompted by the Republicans on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee who raised a host of questions about the State Department and called on her to act.
Confirming the action, which will run alongside the FBI investigation, Shaw wrote to the group: “OIG considers several factors when determining whether to initiate work, including statutory requirements, available resources, our jurisdictional authority, and the existence of criteria against which to measure the department’s actions.
“Considering these factors and the circumstances you detailed in your letter, we plan to begin a preliminary review.”
The Republican Study Committee echoed the calls claiming in a Tweet that Malley had his security clearance suspended for mishandling classified information and that he continued to work without an active clearance.
In a Tweet, the group wrote: “Biden is hoping we aren't paying attention. But we are. We must #InvestigateMalley NOW!”
Like many other Iranians in the US, journalist Karmel Melamed has supported further investigations. He wrote on Twitter: “This whole fiasco with Malley stinks to high hell … He and his mullah regime buddies operating here in America & collaborating together need to be prosecuted for treason against the United States. The lack of accountability for their crimes is shameful.”
In further revelations of Iran’s deepening US influence, Republicans in Congress have issued a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland and Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines warning about the influence of Iran's terror ideology in at least four US-based mosques and centers.
According to Fox News Digital, the three-page GOP letter details Iranian regime-linked mosques and centers in Maryland, Texas, Michigan and Virginia. It claims that the Islamic Education Center (IEC) in Potomac, Maryland, secured funding from what it says is the Iranian regime-controlled Alavi Foundation and Washington-based Iranian Iman, Abolfazi Bahram Nahidian.
The letter gives a damning rundown of the centers and their leaders’ links to the regime. “The Iranian regime's attempts to spread malign influence in the United States in multiple Shiite mosques and cultural centers across the country has been happening for years,” it says.
“These state-sponsored mosques preach hatred toward anyone who disagrees with the Iranian regime and go as far as to praise the ayatollah's repressive reign through songs and shrines. It is imperative that the US government understand and respond to the threat posed by state-sponsored terrorism wherever it appears, whether in the Middle East or at home.”
While Biden avoids affirmative action in Iran, even in the face of aggression in the likes of Syria and the Persian Gulf, meanwhile continuing to push for restarting the nuclear talks (JCPOA), the pressure is on, but the question remains, is Biden listening. Revelations of plots to attack US citizens on home soil continue, but the softly-softly approach of the Biden era is wearing thin for Congress.