Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made explosive revelations during a Fox News appearance, claiming that Iran has attempted to assassinate President-elect Donald Trump on two separate occasions while simultaneously disclosing that Israel had developed plans to eliminate Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei—plans that Trump reportedly blocked.
The stunning disclosures came as Netanyahu sought to justify Israel’s recent extensive missile strikes against Iranian targets, framing the conflict as part of a broader Iranian campaign of international terrorism that directly threatens American leadership.
Iran’s Campaign Against Trump
Speaking with Fox News host Bret Baier, Netanyahu characterized Iran’s efforts against Trump as part of a systematic campaign by a regime that regularly chants “death to America.” The Israeli leader posed a pointed question to American audiences: should “these people who chant ‘death to America'” and “tried to assassinate President Trump twice” be allowed to “have nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them to your cities?”
When pressed by Baier for details about the alleged assassination attempts, Netanyahu clarified that Iran operated “through proxies” and “through their intel,” emphasizing that the Iranian regime considers Trump “enemy number one” due to his decisive leadership style and refusal to accommodate Iranian demands.
“He’s a decisive leader,” Netanyahu said of Trump. “He never took the path that others took to try to bargain with them in a way that is weak, giving them basically a pathway to enrich uranium, which means a pathway to the bomb, padding it with billions and billions of dollars.”
DOJ Confirms Iranian Plot
Netanyahu’s claims align with recent U.S. Department of Justice actions. In November, federal prosecutors brought charges against Farhad Shakeri, an Afghan national believed to be operating from Iran, in connection with an alleged Iranian murder-for-hire plot targeting Trump before his election victory.
According to the DOJ indictment, Iranian intelligence officials approached Shakeri in September 2024, offering him substantial financial resources to develop a plan to assassinate Trump within seven days. When Shakeri indicated he could not complete the mission in that timeframe, Iranian officials allegedly told him to pause the plan, believing Trump would lose the election and be easier to target afterward.
The assassination plot involved sophisticated planning, with Iranian operatives allegedly instructing Shakeri to conduct surveillance on Trump and develop multiple scenarios for the attack. The case reveals how Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) operates international assassination networks, using recruited assets to target perceived enemies worldwide.
Trump himself acknowledged the threat in September, stating there were “big threats on my life by Iran,” indicating that U.S. intelligence services had briefed him on the Iranian regime’s assassination plans. The threats were considered so credible that they prompted enhanced security measures around the former president during his campaign.
The DOJ charges also included two additional defendants allegedly recruited to kill an American journalist who had been an outspoken critic of the Iranian regime, demonstrating the breadth of Iran’s international assassination campaign. The parallel plots show Iran’s systematic approach to eliminating critics and opponents, whether they are journalists, dissidents, or political leaders. Iran has denied these allegations.
The Ayatollah’s Rise to Power
To understand the current crisis, it’s essential to examine how Ayatollah Ali Khamenei consolidated power in Iran and transformed the country into a revolutionary theocracy dedicated to exporting terrorism and eliminating Israel.
Khamenei assumed the position of Supreme Leader in 1989 following the death of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the architect of Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution. Unlike Khomeini, who had widespread religious authority and popular support, Khamenei’s path to power was more calculated and political. At the time of his selection, he was considered a compromise candidate among Iran’s clerical establishment—younger, less charismatic, and with limited religious credentials compared to senior ayatollahs.
The 1979 revolution itself had overthrown Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, a U.S.-allied monarch, replacing a secular, Western-oriented government with a radical Islamic theocracy. Khomeini’s revolutionary ideology was built on the concept of “velayat-e faqih” (guardianship of the Islamic jurist), which gave supreme religious authority absolute power over all aspects of Iranian society and foreign policy.
When Khamenei inherited this system, he faced the challenge of legitimizing his authority despite lacking Khomeini’s religious stature. He compensated by becoming even more radical in his anti-American and anti-Israeli rhetoric, using external enemies to unite domestic support and justify his rule. Under his leadership, Iran developed its network of terrorist proxies, advanced its nuclear program, and institutionalized the chant “Death to America, Death to Israel” as official state policy.
Khamenei’s 35-year reign has been marked by the systematic elimination of political opposition, the brutal suppression of pro-democracy movements, and the export of revolutionary ideology throughout the Middle East. His regime has funded and armed terrorist organizations from Hamas and Hezbollah to various Shia militias, creating the “Axis of Resistance” that now threatens multiple nations across the region.
The Supreme Leader’s power structure operates through the Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which serves as both his praetorian guard and the primary instrument for conducting international terrorism. It is this same IRGC that allegedly orchestrated the assassination attempts against Trump, demonstrating how Khamenei’s revolutionary ideology has evolved into direct threats against American leadership.
In an equally dramatic revelation, Fox News reported that Trump intervened to prevent an Israeli operation targeting Iran’s most senior leadership. According to Fox correspondent Peter Doocy, “A U.S. intelligence official is telling us that President Trump did, in fact, in the last couple of days, nix a plan that the Israelis were putting together to assassinate the supreme leader of Iran.”
This disclosure suggests that Israel had developed operational plans to eliminate Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the architect of Iran’s regional terror network and the ultimate authority behind the regime’s nuclear program and proxy warfare strategy. The plan’s existence indicates the extent to which Israeli-Iranian tensions have escalated beyond conventional military operations toward potential decapitating strikes against enemy leadership.
Trump’s decision to block the operation reflects the delicate balance between supporting Israeli security while managing the risks of regional escalation that could draw the United States into direct conflict with Iran.
Congressional Support for Regime Change
The revelations have garnered significant support from key U.S. legislators who view Iranian leadership as fundamentally hostile to American interests. Senator Ted Cruz, speaking on “Sunday Morning Futures,” declared that America stands “unequivocally with Israel” and suggested that eliminating the Ayatollah could serve U.S. strategic interests.
“I think it is very much in the interests of America to see regime change,” Cruz stated, reflecting growing congressional sentiment that the current Iranian leadership poses an existential threat to regional stability and American security.
Cruz’s assessment of the Supreme Leader was uncompromising: “There is no use redeeming the ayatollah. He is filled with hatred.” This characterization aligns with the broader view among Iran hawks that the regime’s ideological commitment to anti-American terrorism makes diplomatic accommodation impossible.
Strategic Implications
The twin revelations—Iranian attempts to assassinate Trump and Israeli plans to eliminate Khamenei—underscore how the Middle East conflict has evolved beyond regional warfare to include direct threats against the highest levels of leadership on both sides.
Iran’s targeting of Trump represents a unprecedented escalation in the regime’s willingness to conduct terrorist operations against American leadership. The plot demonstrates that Iran views Trump’s return to the presidency as an existential threat to its regional ambitions and nuclear program, justifying extreme measures to prevent his assumption of power.
Conversely, Israel’s development of plans to assassinate the Supreme Leader indicates that the Jewish state views the Iranian threat as severe enough to warrant targeting the regime’s ultimate authority, despite the massive risks such an operation would entail.
Trump’s Balancing Act
Trump’s intervention to prevent the Israeli assassination plot reveals the complex calculations facing the incoming administration. While Trump has been Iran’s most aggressive critic and has strongly supported Israeli security, preventing the Khamenei operation suggests recognition that such an action could trigger uncontrollable regional escalation.
The decision demonstrates Trump’s approach of supporting allies while maintaining strategic control over actions that could draw the United States into unwanted conflicts. His blocking of the operation may reflect a preference for alternative methods of dealing with the Iranian threat that don’t risk immediate massive retaliation.
Regional Ramifications
The disclosure of these assassination plots—both Iranian attempts against Trump and Israeli plans against Khamenei—fundamentally alters the strategic landscape of Middle East conflict. The targeting of supreme leadership on both sides indicates that the Israel-Iran confrontation has moved beyond proxy warfare and conventional military operations to potential elimination of enemy command structures.
This escalation creates unprecedented risks for regional stability, as the assassination of either leader could trigger massive retaliation and potentially draw multiple nations into direct conflict. The involvement of American leadership as both target and decision-maker further internationalizes what was previously a regional confrontation.
Conclusion
Netanyahu’s revelations about Iranian assassination attempts against Trump, combined with reports of Israeli plans to eliminate Iran’s Supreme Leader, expose the deadly serious nature of the current Middle East conflict. These are not merely military operations or proxy conflicts, but existential struggles between leaderships that view each other as fundamental threats requiring elimination.
Trump’s decision to block the Israeli operation while facing Iranian assassination attempts himself demonstrates the extraordinary pressures facing American leadership in managing allies, enemies, and the risks of regional war. As Trump prepares to assume the presidency, he will inherit a conflict where both sides have demonstrated willingness to target the highest levels of enemy leadership—including potentially himself.
The stakes could not be higher: the survival of key leaders, the stability of crucial alliances, and the prevention of a regional war that could reshape the entire Middle East balance of power.
