The Kremlin on Thursday declined to comment on a Reuters report that US intelligence analysts were investigating whether Russia assisted Iranian drone attacks on CIA facilities in the Gulf by providing targeting information or advanced drone technology.

Four people familiar with US intelligence said officials had not reached firm conclusions about possible Russian involvement. However, analysts cited the effectiveness and apparent precision of the strikes, together with Russia’s broader technical support for Iran, as possible evidence.

Reuters and other media have reported, and US officials have acknowledged, that Russia has provided targeting and other assistance for Iranian strikes on US targets in the Gulf more broadly. The intelligence investigation into possible Russian support specifically for attacks on CIA facilities had not previously been disclosed.

At least two CIA sites were struck in March, Reuters and other outlets have reported. One was the CIA station in Saudi Arabia, located inside the US embassy in Riyadh, while another was in eastern Iraq.

Some sources said additional CIA sites had been hit but declined to provide details because their locations are closely guarded secrets.

Intelligence memo points to Russian role

An internal memo from a Western intelligence agency concluded that Russia had probably played a role in targeting CIA facilities in the region, according to an official with access to the document.

The official spoke on condition that the memo’s precise authorship not be disclosed.

Two Western officials in the Gulf who were briefed on intelligence reports said analysts believed the attack in Saudi Arabia involved two Russian-enhanced versions of Iran’s Shahed drones.

One drone reportedly blew a hole through a vulnerable section of the US embassy’s exterior before a second flew through the opening and detonated. No deaths or injuries were reported.

Although Russian assistance for Iran is longstanding, direct help targeting sensitive CIA sites would suggest Moscow is prepared to go further in disrupting US operations as Washington struggles to end the Iran war.

Concerns that Russia may be supplying targeting data to Iran intensified after strikes on a US airbase in Jordan, where Iranian ballistic missiles hit army barracks and killed two soldiers.

The White House referred a request for comment to the CIA, which declined to comment. Iran’s mission to the United Nations, the Russian Defence Ministry and the Saudi government did not respond to requests for comment.

Russia may have improved Shahed drones

The two Western officials said Russia had helped Iran improve the ability of its Shahed drones to reach their targets. Analysts suspected that these enhanced versions were used in the Riyadh attack.

A separate source said Moscow had helped Tehran improve the accuracy of its Shahed-136 drones by supplying the Kometa-M satellite navigation system, which experts say is more accurate and harder to jam than Iran’s domestically produced system.

The Wall Street Journal first reported in March that Russia had supplied Kometa-M systems to Iran. The Kremlin denied that report, describing it as “fake news”.

CIA facilities overseas include the agency’s principal offices in individual countries, traditionally housed inside US embassies and known as stations. The agency also maintains offices, safe houses, logistics hubs and sites used for surveillance and other operations.

The sources declined to disclose the exact number or locations of CIA facilities hit by Iranian drones. One put the number at “more than one and fewer than a dozen”, while another said several facilities had been struck.

Analysts examine Russian targeting data

US intelligence analysts are investigating whether Iran relied on Russian targeting data for the attack on the embassy in Riyadh, the sources said.

Significant doubts remain. Some sources cautioned that Iran may have targeted the US embassy generally and struck the CIA station by chance.

Other analysts have concluded that few countries besides Russia would possess both the ability to obtain such sensitive targeting information and an interest in using it against the United States.

Daniel Hoffman, a former CIA station chief and undercover operations officer, said it would not be surprising for Moscow to help Tehran target CIA facilities because of the two countries’ close strategic relationship.

“They share an interest in trying to reduce or eliminate US influence altogether in their self-designated spheres of influence,” Hoffman said.