Israel Warned US of Iranian Threats to Kill Trump

Israel has repeatedly warned the United States over the past year that Iran intended to assassinate US President Donald Trump, although US intelligence officials have been unable to independently verify some of the specific threats.

Warnings passed to US intelligence agencies included possible plots to shoot Trump with a sniper or recruit someone to attack him with a knife at a large public event, a current US official and two former officials told Reuters. The tips began in the lead-up to the 12-day war in June 2025 and intensified ahead of the US decision to go to war in Iran in February.

The most detailed warning came ahead of the NATO summit in Ankara in July. Israeli officials briefed the White House on intelligence indicating that Iran might try to kill Trump, potentially with a shoulder-launched missile, while he traveled aboard Air Force One to the summit.

The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has been unable to corroborate some of the specific threats against Trump shared by Israeli intelligence since early last year, according to Reuters sources.

A Turkish official also said the country’s intelligence agencies had no evidence corroborating the Israeli claim of a threat to Trump during the NATO summit and shared that assessment with the United States.

Despite the lack of verification, White House officials and the Secret Service took precautionary measures to mitigate the threats. During Trump’s trip to Turkey, an operation was carried out in which he was moved from Air Force One to another aircraft for his flight out of the country.

(Reuters, sak)