Israel’s Shin Bet security agency has confirmed that Yair Netanyahu, the son of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, had faced assassination threats from Iran. In response to the reported threat, Shin Bet has urgently evacuated him from the United States back to Israel.
In a statement released on Saturday (August 29th), Shin Bet confirmed, “Due to significant threats to harm Yair Netanyahu, an assessment was made, leading to the urgent evacuation of him and his security team, sending him back to Israel.”
Prior to the agency’s statement, reports last week suggested that Iran had plotted to assassinate Yair in December 2025 while he was residing in Miami, Florida. During a phone interview with Israel’s Channel 14 last Monday (August 24th), Netanyahu stated, “Iran has targeted one of my sons. Iran has attempted to kill one of my sons.”
However, Netanyahu did not disclose whether Iran’s target was his eldest son, Yair, or his younger son, Avner.
Last Tuesday, the U.S. conservative media outlet Newsmax cited a U.S. law enforcement source claiming to be knowledgeable about the situation, reporting that Israeli intelligence had uncovered Iran’s plot to assassinate Yair in Florida last December, issuing a warning to U.S. authorities.
The American source informed Newsmax that, based on intelligence assessments, Iranian operatives had been conducting on-the-ground operations in the Miami area, even surveilling Yair’s residence and movements.
Yair had been under tight protection by Shin Bet agents, and upon learning of the assassination threat, Israeli authorities instructed him to immediately leave his residence in Florida.
Reports indicated that Yair left Miami without even taking his personal belongings, heading directly back to Israel where he currently resides.
According to Israel’s Channel 12, in order to carry out this emergency operation, Shin Bet dispatched agents from New York to Miami. These agents were originally tasked with protecting Israeli President Isaac Herzog during his visit to New York.
Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara have two sons. Eldest son Yair, born in 1991, served in the Israel Defense Forces and has been living in Miami, frequently expressing political views on social media. Younger son Avner, born in 1994, also served in the IDF but has been less publicly involved in politics, with lower media exposure.
(Reference: The Jerusalem Post)