Israel has shared intelligence with the United States alleging that Iran recently developed a new plot to assassinate President Donald Trump, according to multiple US media reports.
The Wall Street Journal first reported the development, saying Israel passed the intelligence to American officials this week.
Advertisement
CNN, citing two sources familiar with the matter, separately confirmed the warning and said it concerned a specific alleged plot, distinct from a broader stream of threat reporting US agencies had already been tracking.
The exact details of the alleged plan have not been made public.
Two sources told CNN that US intelligence agencies had neither independently verified the Israeli intelligence nor been tracking the specific plot before the warning came in.
Advertisement
Some American officials interpreted the Israeli report as part of a broader effort to influence Trump’s decisions on whether to escalate US military action against Iran, CNN reported, adding that parts of the US intelligence community remain cautious about Israeli threat assessments generally.
Asked to comment on the reports, the White House referred journalists to remarks Trump made on Wednesday while speaking to reporters in Ankara, Turkiye, at the NATO summit.
“They want to take out the US leader, me,” Trump said. “I’m on whatever list. I saw this morning I’m on every single one of their lists. And so far, I guess I’ve been a bit lucky, but maybe that doesn’t last very long.”
Trump separately said he had recently learned of a new list ranking him as Iran’s top assassination target, though it is unclear whether he was referring to the Israeli intelligence specifically.
Advertisement
US officials have long warned that Iran could target Trump in retaliation for the 2020 US drone strike, ordered by Trump during his first term, that killed senior Iranian military commander Qasem Soleimani.
Iran has repeatedly vowed to avenge his death.
The reports emerge against a backdrop of growing friction between Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over how to proceed with Iran.
Netanyahu has pushed for continued military pressure on Tehran, while Trump has sought to preserve a ceasefire that has since come apart, citing concerns over the wider economic fallout of continued conflict.
Advertisement
Trump and Netanyahu spoke by phone on Thursday.
Netanyahu’s office said the two agreed to continue coordination between their countries, and that Trump briefed him on recent US activity in the Gulf.
The intelligence-sharing report follows a weekend of funeral proceedings in Iran for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the country’s Supreme Leader killed at the start of the conflict, during which crowds were seen chanting for Trump’s death.
It also comes days after a fragile 60-day ceasefire between Washington and Tehran unravelled amid a fresh exchange of strikes.