Netanyahu had said Iran tried to kill one of his sons but declined to identify whether he meant Yair or Avner Netanyahu.
By Vered Weiss, World Israel News
Israeli security officials ordered Yair Netanyahu to leave the United States immediately and return to Israel after intelligence indicated he faced a serious threat, the Shin Bet confirmed, identifying him for the first time as the son Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Iran had sought to assassinate.
The security agency said the decision followed an assessment of intelligence concerning the 35-year-old Netanyahu, who was in Florida.
“There was a significant threat to harm Yair Netanyahu,” the Shin Bet said. “In light of this, and following a situation assessment, a decision was made to urgently extract him, together with his security detail, back to Israel.”
A report said Israeli intelligence uncovered an Iranian assassination plot in December and notified U.S. authorities.
A U.S. source told Newsmax that Iranian terrorists were believed to be “on the ground” around Miami and had conducted surveillance of Yair Netanyahu’s home and movements.
He was instructed to leave immediately and returned directly to Israel without collecting his belongings, according to the report. His Israeli security detail accompanied him.
The Shin Bet confirmation resolves which of Netanyahu’s two sons was the subject of comments the prime minister made five days earlier.
Netanyahu had said Iran tried to kill one of his sons but declined to identify whether he meant Yair or Avner Netanyahu.
During an interview with Channel 14 last week, the prime minister described the alleged plot while discussing threats from Iran.
“There is something here that is unimaginable,” Netanyahu said. “Iran marked one of my sons. Iran tried to murder him, tried to murder one of my sons.”
Until the Shin Bet statement, Israeli authorities had not publicly identified Yair Netanyahu as the target.
The agency did not disclose further details about the intelligence or the alleged Iranian operation. It confirmed that authorities considered the danger sufficiently serious to require Yair Netanyahu and his security personnel to leave the United States urgently.
Yair Netanyahu currently lives in Israel after arriving from Miami, Florida.
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