U.S. Warned Iran That Israel Planned to Assassinate Negotiators During Ceasefire Talks

The talks in question were aimed at ending the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran. U.S. officials feared an assassination would derail the fragile ceasefire negotiations .

NBC News and CNN independently confirmed the story

Two other major news organizations corroborated the Times's reporting with their own sources:

• NBC News reported separately on July 4, citing a U.S. official and an Iranian official, confirming that U.S. officials were indeed concerned Israel might try to kill the negotiators, and that Tehran was warned about the threat .
• CNN reported on July 3, citing two U.S. officials, that Washington relayed the warning through intermediaries in April, specifically saying Israel might target Ghalibaf or Araghchi . CNN added that there were no immediate indications U.S. intelligence had knowledge of a specific or imminent Israeli plot .

Prime Minister Netanyahu's office response

The Israeli Prime Minister's Office issued a statement on July 3 rejecting the report outright . The full statement read: "As usual, The New York Times' latest story about Israel and the Iranian negotiators is fake news. A complete fabrication of reality, lacking any foundation in truth" .

This response is consistent with Netanyahu's office repeatedly dismissing past NYT reports on Israel-Iran matters as "fake news" . In May 2025, for example, Netanyahu's office similarly dismissed a Times report alleging Israel planned to strike Iranian nuclear facilities to disrupt U.S.-Iran talks .

Bottom line

The NYT story is not an isolated or uncorroborated report — NBC News and CNN both confirmed the U.S. warning through their own sourcing. Netanyahu's office denied the allegation without providing specific counter-evidence. The U.S. has not publicly confirmed or denied the details of the warning, but multiple U.S. officials spoke to three major news organizations on the record. The episode highlights the high stakes and deep mutual suspicion surrounding the 2026 U.S.-Iran ceasefire negotiations.