A newly declassified appendix to Special Counsel John Durham’s report alleges that then-Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton personally approved a July 26 2016 plan to portray Donald Trump as having ties to Russian hackers, according to intelligence memoranda released on 31 July. The documents indicate the Central Intelligence Agency judged the Russian memos referencing the plan to be credible and circulated them to senior officials, while the Federal Bureau of Investigation nevertheless advanced its Crossfire Hurricane probe. The appendix further suggests Clinton-campaign allies intended to use cybersecurity firms such as CrowdStrike to supply information to both investigators and the media in the absence of direct evidence of collusion. While Durham’s broader investigation, completed in 2023, criticised the FBI’s reliance on the unverified Steele dossier, it brought no new criminal charges and found no proof of a coordinated government conspiracy. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard authorised the declassification. The release is expected to reignite partisan debate over the origins of the Russia inquiry ahead of the 2026 mid-term elections, although it does not alter the Justice Department’s prior conclusion that no prosecution is warranted.