A major security breach was reported from Washington on Wednesday night amidst the escalating US-Israeli war against Iran. The country remains under a heightened alert level — with the FBI recently warning California that Iran could retaliate through a drone attack.

According to a Washington Post report, unidentified drones were detected above the Washington Army base that houses Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth. Multiple drones were reportedly spotted over Fort Lesley J McNair on a single night in the last 10 days — prompting increased security measures and a meeting at the White House to discuss responses.

The report said the appearance of drones over Fort McNair had prompted officials to weigh relocating Rubio ‌and Hegseth. Officials are still working to determine where the dones originated.

There has been no official confirmation about the drone appearances and the whereabouts of President Donald Trump’s top lieutenants remain unclear. Both Hegseth and Rubio have played a critical role in the ongoing Iran conflict and wield significiant decision-making power under the President.

California facing imminent threat from Iran?

The incident also comes days after the Federal Bureau of Investigation shared a warning with police departments across California — flagging the possibility of an Iranian drone attack along the West Coast. The alert had caused significant anxiety and confusion across the state. Officials later asserted that there was no credible threat from Iran but security remains high aross the region.

“We recently acquired unverified information that as of early February 2026, Iran allegedly aspired to conduct a surprise attack using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) from an unidentified vessel off the coast of the United States homeland, specifically against unspecified targets in California, in the event the U.S. conducted strikes against Iran. We have no additional information on the timing, method, target, or perpetrators of this alleged attack,” the FBI alert said.

It was reportedly distributed at the end of February — just before the US and Israel struck Iran. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt had also pushed back against the warning and wrote on X that the original FBI alert had been “about a single, unverified tip”.

“To be clear: No such threat from Iran to our homeland exists, and it never did,” she added as the news went viral.