Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has accused Iran’s Islamic regime of targeting US President Donald Trump for assassination, describing him as the top threat to Tehran’s nuclear agenda.
In a high-stakes interview with Fox News, Netanyahu also warned of an “imminent” nuclear and ballistic missile threat from Iran, justifying Israel’s aggressive response in a military campaign dubbed Operation Rising Lion.
“They Want to Kill Him”: Netanyahu Alleges Iranian Plot Against Trump
In a bold statement during the interview, Netanyahu claimed that Iran had identified Trump as its primary enemy due to his hardline stance against its nuclear program.
“They want to kill him. He’s enemy number one,” he said, as quoted by Fox News.
Israeli Prime Minister @netanyahu on intel of Iranian attempts to assassinate President @realDonaldTrump— “he’s enemy number one..” and on when he let President Trump know of the plans for launching the strikes #FoxNews #SpecialReport #Israel pic.twitter.com/l2xX10ZwfH
— Bret Baier (@BretBaier) June 15, 2025
Netanyahu praised Trump for dismantling what he termed a weak nuclear deal and taking strong action against Iran, including the elimination of Qasem Soleimani.
“He’s a decisive leader. He never took the path that others took to try to bargain with them weakly, giving them a pathway to enrich uranium, which means a pathway to the bomb, padding it with billions and billions of dollars,” Netanyahu said.
Fox News quoted Netanyahu as saying, “He took up this fake agreement and tore it up. He killed Qasem Soleimani. He made it very clear, including now, ‘You cannot have a nuclear weapon, which means you cannot enrich uranium.’ He’s been very forceful, so for them, he’s enemy number one.”
Netanyahu revealed that he, too, was a target of the Iranian regime, referencing a missile attack that struck the bedroom window of his residence. He referred to himself as Trump’s “junior partner” in confronting Iran’s nuclear and missile ambitions.
Israel’s Military Response: Operation Rising Lion
Calling Iran’s threats “existential,” Netanyahu said Israel had no option but to act in what he termed “the 12th hour.”
“We were facing an imminent threat, a dual existential threat,” he said.
“One, the threat of Iran rushing to weaponise their enriched uranium to make atomic bombs with a specific and declared intent to destroy us. Second, a rush to increase their ballistic missile arsenal to a capacity of 3,600 weapons a year… Within three years, 10,000 ballistic missiles, each weighing a ton, coming in at Mach 6, right into our cities, as you saw today… and then in 26 years, 20,000 [missiles]. No country can sustain that, and certainly not a country the size of Israel, so we had to act.”
Netanyahu emphasized that Israel’s recent strikes were not just for its protection but for global security.
Iran’s Retaliation and the Ongoing Threat
Following Israel’s offensive, Iran launched a large-scale ballistic missile attack on Israeli cities. However, many of the incoming projectiles were intercepted.
Netanyahu claimed Israel’s actions had significantly set back Iran’s nuclear program and dismissed any hope for diplomatic progress.
“Negotiations with the terrorism-sponsoring regime were going nowhere,” he said.
Netanyahu reiterated Israel’s resolve to eliminate the Iranian nuclear and missile threat, describing Operation Rising Lion as a major military achievement.
“One of the greatest military operations in history,” he said.
Addressing the people of Iran directly, Netanyahu added, “They had been oppressed for 50 years by the same Islamic regime that has long threatened to destroy the State of Israel,” Fox News reported.
