US Blocks Release Of Report Claiming Russia Plans To Attack Biden Mental Health - Reports

The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) halted the dissemination of an intelligence report in early July warning of Russian plans to meddle in the upcoming presidential election by promoting allegations that Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden suffers from poor mental health, ABC News reported on Wednesday

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 02nd September, 2020) The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) halted the dissemination of an intelligence report in early July warning of Russian plans to meddle in the upcoming presidential election by promoting allegations that Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden suffers from poor mental health, ABC news reported on Wednesday.

ABC based its report on internal emails, as well as a draft of the intelligence document obtained by the network.

The draft bulletin, titled "Russia Likely to Denigrate Health of US Candidates to Influence 2020 Election," was submitted to the agency's legislative and public affairs office for review on July 7.

The analysis was not meant for public consumption, but was slated for distributed to Federal, state and local law enforcement partners agencies on July 9, the report said, citing emails obtained by ABC.

DHS Chief of Staff John Gountanis halted the release, saying he wished to first discuss the document with acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf before proceeding. The document still has not been released, according to the network.

A spokesperson for DHS told ABC that the bulletin's release was "delayed" because it failed to meet the agency's standards.

Russia has repeatedly and emphatically denied allegations that Moscow interfered in the 2016 presidential election and rejected more recent claims of plans to do the same in the US campaign ahead of the November 3 vote.