Part of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), the National Intelligence Officer for the Near East is the senior officer for intelligence estimates for that area. Alan Pino has been the incumbent since September 2005.
Prior to the creation of the ODNI, National Intelligence Officers were part of the Central Intelligence Agency. Other officers who have served in the post include Paul Pillar and Robert Ames. Ames died in the 1983 bombing of the U.S. embassy in Beirut.