WSJ found out about checking the phones of White House staff due to a leak to the press

A number of employees of the administration of US President Donald Trump were asked to hand over their phones as part of an investigation into leaks to the press about the safety of an aircraft donated by Qatar. This was reported by The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) on July 23.

According to the newspaper, during a visit to Turkey for the NATO summit, Trump was informed of Iran's alleged new plan to organize an assassination attempt on him. Some American officials found the information received insufficiently convincing, but the president's team had doubts about the level of protection of the plane donated by Qatar, on which the American leader flew to Ankara.

As a result, Trump decided to leave the country on the former presidential flight Air Force One, which was better equipped in terms of security. Soon, The New York Times (NYT) linked the replacement of the aircraft to the alleged threat from Iran and the possible vulnerabilities of the Qatari side.

The US president, according to the WSJ, was outraged by the appearance of classified information in the media and the speed with which they appeared to journalists. Trump considered that the disclosure of the characteristics of the presidential aircraft by the press could in itself pose a security threat. He demanded to be regularly informed about the search for the source of the leak.

According to the WSJ, during the inspections, some White House employees were asked to hand over their mobile phones. At the same time, the publication does not specify who these officials were and what exactly was checked on the devices. The source of the leak is also not reported.

Later, the investigation involved NYT journalists who worked on materials about the plane. In early July, they were subpoenaed to testify. However, on the eve of July 23, the Reuters news agency, citing Prosecutor Sean Buckley, reported on the withdrawal of subpoenas for NYT journalists. At the same time, the leak investigation itself can continue.

Bring the East closer: Trump intends to sign mega-deals on a tour of the region

During negotiations with the Arab monarchs, the US president may also discuss the Ukrainian conflict.

In 2025, the royal family of Qatar presented Trump with a Boeing 747-8 aircraft worth about $400 million to use as the presidential Air Force One aircraft. At the same time, CNN reported that the initiator of the gift was the White House, not Qatar.

Due to the transfer of the aircraft in May, the Democrats demanded an investigation into compliance with federal ethics rules or remuneration provisions enshrined in the US Constitution. In July 2025, the NYT reported that the Pentagon had secretly transferred $934 million from a nuclear missile modernization project to an unnamed secret project to repair and refit a Qatari gift to Trump.