Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu revealed that Iran attempted to assassinate one of his sons, publicly disclosing a threat that Israeli media say had been barred from publication for months.

Netanyahu made the revelation during a live phone conversation with Channel 14 military correspondent Noam Amir while discussing the security provided to members of his family. He did not identify whether Yair or Avner Netanyahu was targeted, and no operational details about the alleged assassination attempt have been released.

“Iran ‘targeted’ one of my sons. It tried to assassinate one of my sons,” Netanyahu said, arguing that the protection surrounding his family is a genuine security necessity rather than a privilege.

The disclosure adds a major new dimension to the debate over the unusually extensive security arrangements surrounding the Netanyahu family.

A ministerial committee recently approved lifetime Shin Bet protection for Netanyahu himself. His wife, Sara, is to remain protected for as long as Netanyahu is alive, while their sons, Yair and Avner, are set to receive protection for five years after he leaves office. Israeli reports have said security assessments view the Netanyahu family as facing an exceptionally high threat from enemies seeking revenge for Israeli military and intelligence operations.

The newly disclosed threat is also not the first confirmed Iranian effort to target Netanyahu.

In a previous case, the Shin Bet said Iranian intelligence operatives recruited an Israeli businessman who was smuggled into Iran and asked to help advance assassination plots against Netanyahu, then-defense minister Yoav Gallant and then-Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar. Iranian officials also explored attacks on other senior Israeli figures. The Shin Bet has separately warned of an escalation in Tehran’s efforts to recruit Israelis for espionage, terrorism and assassination operations.

Netanyahu did not reveal which son Iran targeted, when the operation was planned, how it was supposed to be carried out or how close it came to execution.

But the prime minister’s disclosure indicates that the threat surrounding Israel’s leadership has extended beyond senior officials themselves and directly to their immediate families, offering new context for security measures that have drawn considerable political scrutiny.