Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu revealed Monday that Iran attempted to assassinate one of his two sons, publicly disclosing an alleged plot that had reportedly been known to Israel’s security establishment and barred from publication for months.
“There is something here that is unbelievable. Iran targeted one of my sons. Iran tried to kill, to murder one of my sons,” Netanyahu told Channel 14 military correspondent Noam Amir during a phone interview.
When Amir asked whether the attempted assassination was based on intelligence presented to the prime minister, Netanyahu declined to elaborate, instead repeating the extraordinary claim.
“Iran tried to murder one of my sons,” Netanyahu said.
Netanyahu did not identify whether Iran allegedly targeted Yair or Avner Netanyahu, nor did he disclose when or how the attempted assassination took place.
Israeli media reported that information about the alleged Iranian plot had been subject to military censorship for several months. Channel 12 reported that Israel’s security establishment had known about the attempt for months and that it occurred while Yair Netanyahu was outside Israel, though the network did not identify Yair as the son who was targeted.
Netanyahu disclosed the plot while defending the security protection afforded to his family, arguing that the Iranian threat demonstrated that such measures were a necessity rather than a luxury.
“That is why this security is not a luxury,” Netanyahu said, warning that without adequate protection, those seeking to target his family “could succeed.”
In July, Israel’s Ministerial Committee for Shin Bet Affairs approved extended security protection for Netanyahu’s wife, Sara, and sons Yair and Avner. Israeli reports said Netanyahu will receive protection for life, while his sons are slated to remain protected for five years even if he leaves office.
Israel’s Shin Bet domestic security agency and Mossad foreign intelligence agency reportedly determined that Netanyahu and his family face a heightened long-term threat from Israel’s enemies following the killing of senior Iranian officials during the war.
Netanyahu’s disclosure came the same day Iranian state television reportedly broadcast an unusually explicit segment detailing efforts to locate and assassinate President Donald Trump’s 20-year-old son, Barron Trump.
The three-minute broadcast, reportedly titled “Where to Kill Barron Trump?”, purported to identify locations frequented by the president’s son, aspects of his daily routine, and the security surrounding him while claiming a $10 million bounty was available for his assassination.
Iran International reported that the broadcast featured graphics purporting to map Barron Trump’s movements, social connections, and layers of Secret Service protection, while noting that its claims about an active assassination effort could not be independently verified.
The broadcast marked the latest in a series of threats from Iranian state and state-linked media against Trump and members of his family.
In July, billboards displayed across Tehran reportedly depicted Trump and members of his family as dead, while the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-affiliated Tasnim News Agency published a video purporting to identify locations and security vulnerabilities associated with first lady Melania Trump. The video reportedly concluded with a warning directed at the president’s youngest son: “Barron Trump, wait for us!”
Iranian state-linked messaging has also repeatedly threatened Trump himself, including a Tehran billboard reportedly depicting the president dead in a coffin alongside the words, “We will kill Trump.”
The threats have extended beyond propaganda. U.S. prosecutors have previously accused individuals acting at Iran’s direction of participating in plots to assassinate Trump and other current and former American officials.
Israel has likewise uncovered alleged Iranian efforts to recruit Israelis to carry out assassinations. Israeli authorities announced in 2024 that they had arrested Motti Maman, a 73-year-old Israeli accused of traveling to Iran and meeting Iranian intelligence officials who discussed potential plots targeting Netanyahu, then-Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and then-Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar.
Netanyahu offered no further details Monday about the newly disclosed attempt against his son or whether it was connected to any previously revealed Iranian operation.
Iran’s mission to the United Nations did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on Netanyahu’s accusation.
Joshua Klein is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at jklein@breitbart.com. Follow him on Twitter @JoshuaKlein.