US intelligence officials believe Russian hackers planted a false news story that led Saudi Arabia and several allies to sever relations with Qatar, prompting a diplomatic crisis, CNN reported Tuesday.

FBI experts visited Qatar in late May to analyse an alleged cyber breach that saw the hackers place the fake story with Qatar&#39;s state news agency, the US broadcaster said.

Saudi Arabia then cited the false item as part of its reason for instituting a diplomatic and economic blockade against Qatar, the report said.

Qatar&#39;s government said the May 23 news report attributed false remarks to the emirate&#39;s ruler that appeared friendly to Iran and Israel, and questioned whether US President Donald Trump would last in office, according to CNN.

Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman al-Thani told the broadcaster that the FBI has confirmed the hack and the planting of fake news.

&quot;Whatever has been thrown as an accusation is all based on misinformation and we think that the entire crisis is being based on misinformation,&quot; he told CNN.

&quot;It was started based on fabricated news, being wedged and being inserted in our national news agency, which was hacked and proved by the FBI,&quot; he added.

If accurate, the allegations would indicate Russian efforts to undermine US foreign policy, building on US intelligence concerns that Russian hackers attempted to influence last year`s presidential election, won by Trump. The Kremlin denies meddling.

Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain announced Monday they were severing diplomatic relations and closing air, sea and land links with Qatar.

They accused the tiny Gulf state of harboring extremist groups and suggested Qatari support for the agenda of Saudi Arabia`s regional archrival Iran. Qatar has strenuously denied the allegations.

Although Qatar hosts the largest American military airbase in the Middle East, Trump threw his weight behind the Saudi-led effort to isolate the emirate in a surprise move on Tuesday.

He suggested Qatar was funding extremism.

&quot;So good to see the Saudi Arabia visit with the King and 50 countries already paying off,&quot; he tweeted in reference to his trip to Riyadh last month.

&quot;They said they would take a hard line on funding... extremism, and all reference was pointing to Qatar. Perhaps this will be the beginning of the end to the horror of terrorism!&quot;

The CNN report quoted the Qatari government communications office as saying it was working with the FBI and Britain`s National Crime Agency on an ongoing hacking investigation.

 
(AFP)

 
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Qatar's government said the May 23 news report attributed false remarks to the emirate's ruler that appeared friendly to Iran and Israel

US intelligence officials believe Russian hackers planted a false news story that led Saudi Arabia and several allies to sever relations with Qatar, prompting a diplomatic crisis, CNN reported Tuesday. FBI experts visited Qatar in late May to analyse an alleged cyber breach that saw the hackers place the fake story with Qatar's state news agency, the US broadcaster said. Saudi Arabia then cited the false item as part of its reason for instituting a diplomatic and economic blockade against Qatar, the report said. Qatar's government said the May 23 news report attributed false remarks to the emirate's ruler that appeared friendly to Iran and Israel, and questioned whether US President Donald Trump would last in office, according to CNN. Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman al-Thani told the broadcaster that the FBI has confirmed the hack and the planting of fake news. "Whatever has been thrown as an accusation is all based on misinformation and we think that the entire crisis is being based on misinformation," he told CNN. "It was started based on fabricated news, being wedged and being inserted in our national news agency, which was hacked and proved by the FBI," he added. If accurate, the allegations would indicate Russian efforts to undermine US foreign policy, building on US intelligence concerns that Russian hackers attempted to influence last year`s presidential election, won by Trump. The Kremlin denies meddling. Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain announced Monday they were severing diplomatic relations and closing air, sea and land links with Qatar. They accused the tiny Gulf state of harboring extremist groups and suggested Qatari support for the agenda of Saudi Arabia`s regional archrival Iran. Qatar has strenuously denied the allegations. Although Qatar hosts the largest American military airbase in the Middle East, Trump threw his weight behind the Saudi-led effort to isolate the emirate in a surprise move on Tuesday. He suggested Qatar was funding extremism. "So good to see the Saudi Arabia visit with the King and 50 countries already paying off," he tweeted in reference to his trip to Riyadh last month. "They said they would take a hard line on funding... extremism, and all reference was pointing to Qatar. Perhaps this will be the beginning of the end to the horror of terrorism!" The CNN report quoted the Qatari government communications office as saying it was working with the FBI and Britain`s National Crime Agency on an ongoing hacking investigation. (AFP)

Russian hackers planted fake news which sparked Qatar crisis: Report

Classified documents presented last week to president-elect Donald Trump included allegations that Russian operatives claim to have compromising information about him, CNN reported on Tuesday.

The allegations were in a two-page synopsis appended to a report presented by US&nbsp;intelligence officials to Trump and President Barack Obama on Russian interference in the 2016 election, CNN said, citing multiple US&nbsp;officials with direct knowledge of the briefings.

The allegations came, in part, from memos compiled by a former British intelligence operative, whose past work US&nbsp;intelligence officials consider credible, CNN reported.

It said the FBI is investigating the credibility and accuracy of these allegations, which are based primarily on information from Russian sources, but has not confirmed many essential details in the memos about Trump.

The FBI declined&nbsp;to comment.

Allegations that Russia attempted to compromise New York real estate businessman Trump have been circulating in Washington for months, and they were presented to US&nbsp;officials last year.

Reuters has not been able to corroborate the allegations or confirm the existence of the two-page synopsis reported by CNN.

The warning to Trump, however, coincides with growing concern about what Director of National Intelligence James Clapper has called a &quot;multifaceted&quot; Russian influence and espionage campaign in Europe and the United States.

In addition to hacking computer networks and spreading propaganda and fake news, it includes efforts to cultivate business and political leaders and find compromising personal, financial or other information on persons of interest, US&nbsp;intelligence officials said.

The classified briefings last week were presented by Clapper, Federal Bureau of Investigation director James Comey, Central Intelligence Agency director John Brennan and National Security Agency director Mike Rogers.

One reason the US&nbsp;intelligence chiefs took the extraordinary step of including the synopsis in the briefing documents was to make Trump aware that allegations about him are circulating among intelligence agencies, senior members of Congress and government officials, CNN said.

An unclassified intelligence report released on Friday concluded that Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered an effort to help Trump&#39;s electoral chances by discrediting Democrat Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential campaign.

The report said US&nbsp;intelligence agencies have concluded that as part of the effort Russia&#39;s military intelligence agency, the GRU, used intermediaries such as WikiLeaks and others to release emails it hacked from the Democratic National Committee and top Democrats.

(Reuters)

Allegations that Russia attempted to compromise New York real estate businessman Trump have been circulating in Washington for months

Classified documents presented last week to president-elect Donald Trump included allegations that Russian operatives claim to have compromising information about him, CNN reported on Tuesday. The allegations were in a two-page synopsis appended to a report presented by US intelligence officials to Trump and President Barack Obama on Russian interference in the 2016 election, CNN said, citing multiple US officials with direct knowledge of the briefings. The allegations came, in part, from memos compiled by a former British intelligence operative, whose past work US intelligence officials consider credible, CNN reported. It said the FBI is investigating the credibility and accuracy of these allegations, which are based primarily on information from Russian sources, but has not confirmed many essential details in the memos about Trump. The FBI declined to comment. Allegations that Russia attempted to compromise New York real estate businessman Trump have been circulating in Washington for months, and they were presented to US officials last year. Reuters has not been able to corroborate the allegations or confirm the existence of the two-page synopsis reported by CNN. The warning to Trump, however, coincides with growing concern about what Director of National Intelligence James Clapper has called a "multifaceted" Russian influence and espionage campaign in Europe and the United States. In addition to hacking computer networks and spreading propaganda and fake news, it includes efforts to cultivate business and political leaders and find compromising personal, financial or other information on persons of interest, US intelligence officials said. The classified briefings last week were presented by Clapper, Federal Bureau of Investigation director James Comey, Central Intelligence Agency director John Brennan and National Security Agency director Mike Rogers. One reason the US intelligence chiefs took the extraordinary step of including the synopsis in the briefing documents was to make Trump aware that allegations about him are circulating among intelligence agencies, senior members of Congress and government officials, CNN said. An unclassified intelligence report released on Friday concluded that Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered an effort to help Trump's electoral chances by discrediting Democrat Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential campaign. The report said US intelligence agencies have concluded that as part of the effort Russia's military intelligence agency, the GRU, used intermediaries such as WikiLeaks and others to release emails it hacked from the Democratic National Committee and top Democrats. (Reuters)

Russian operatives claim to have compromising information on Trump: CNN

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Russian hackers planted fake news which sparked Qatar crisis: Report

Russian operatives claim to have compromising information on Trump: CNN