Israel denies targeting Iran FM Araghchi, Speaker Ghalibaf
Shafaq News- Middle East
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office on Friday denied a New York Times report that Israel planned to assassinate senior Iranian negotiators during indirect US-Iran talks, calling the account “fake news” and “a complete fabrication.”
The Prime Minister’s Office:As usual, The New York Times' latest story about Israel and the Iranian negotiators is fake news.A complete fabrication of reality.
— Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) July 3, 2026
The New York Times had reported that US officials feared Israel could target Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf during talks aimed at ending the war, with Washington warning Tehran indirectly through regional intermediaries.
The US and Israel have assassinated several senior Axis of Resistance figures in recent years, including Iran’s former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on February 28; senior Iranian commanders and nuclear scientists in 2025 and 2026; and Hezbollah Secretary-General Hasan Nasrallah in Lebanon and Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran in 2024.
In March, Reuters reported, citing a Pakistani source, that Israel removed Araghchi and Ghalibaf from a “hit list” after Pakistan asked the US to intervene, warning that killing them would leave no one to negotiate with as US-Iran meetings intensified. The talks led to a memorandum of understanding aimed at halting hostilities across the Middle East, including in Lebanon, reopening maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, and unlocking part of Iran’s frozen funds under monitored conditions.
