Fearing that Iran might assassinate him… Netanyahu fears for the life of his son Yair
According to Israeli intelligence Walla website, Tuesday, the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently requested that his son Yair’s security be reinforced in anticipation of Iranian revenge for the assassination of Hamas political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran.
Yair, (33), has been living in Miami since April 2023, under the protection of the Israeli General Security Service (Shabak), at a cost of 2.5 million shekels (about $680,000) annually, according to Walla.
Netanyahu recently requested tightening security measures around his son Yair, fearing that the reaction of Iran and its agents to the assassination of Haniyeh in Tehran would focus on Israeli figures and targets abroad.
Walla website quoted unnamed sources close to Netanyahu as saying that the latter’s office director, Yossi Sheli, approached the Personal Security Advisory Committee of the General Security Service (Shabak) in recent days with a request to examine the intensity of the security around Yair.
The sources added that the advisory committee requested intelligence materials to justify the security tightening, and not to rely on instinct alone.
Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran on July 31, in an attack attributed to Tel Aviv, although it didn’t officially claim responsibility, and senior Iranian officials vowed revenge.
The responsibility for the security of the Netanyahu family members was in the hands of the Magen unit, which operates under the supervision of his office, but the stormy demonstrations in Tel Aviv against the controversial judicial reform plan in 2023 prompted the Netanyahu family to request increased security around it and transfer its responsibility to the personal security unit of the Shin Bet, which is responsible for the security of the symbols of government in Israel.
Indeed, the Ministerial Committee for Shin Bet Affairs, headed by Netanyahu, agreed to transfer responsibility for securing the family to the Shin Bet.
