The United States quietly worked through intermediaries in the Middle East to warn Iran that Israel was allegedly planning to target senior Iranian negotiators during delicate ceasefire talks this spring, according to reports published by The New York Times and The Washington Post.
The reports say U.S. officials grew increasingly concerned that Israel could attempt to assassinate Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf as diplomatic negotiations between Washington and Tehran were underway.
According to the reports, officials in the Trump administration feared such an attack could derail the negotiations, collapse efforts toward a ceasefire and trigger a renewed outbreak of fighting. As a result, Washington reportedly asked regional intermediaries to relay warnings to Tehran about the potential threat.
The reports indicate that U.S. officials believed the two Iranian leaders could have been viewed as legitimate military targets during the height of the conflict. However, once diplomatic negotiations intensified in April, officials reportedly concluded that targeting either official would almost certainly bring the talks to an abrupt end.
Iranian officials had also reportedly taken steps to seek their own assurances that members of their negotiating team would not be targeted while participating in diplomatic meetings.
According to the reports, Tehran used intermediaries in Pakistan and Qatar to seek guarantees that Israel would not attack members of the Iranian delegation during the negotiations.
One incident highlighted in the reports involved Ghalibaf’s return from diplomatic talks in Islamabad.
According to Iranian officials cited by The New York Times, Iranian intelligence warned of a possible Israeli threat against the aircraft carrying Ghalibaf. The reports state that the plane made an emergency landing before the delegation completed the remainder of its journey back to Tehran by road.
Despite those reported security concerns, both Araghchi and Ghalibaf continued participating in the negotiations.
The two officials reportedly attended additional diplomatic meetings in Qatar and later in Switzerland alongside Vice President JD Vance and members of the U.S. delegation as efforts to advance the negotiations continued.
The reports suggest the security concerns did not deter the Iranian delegation from remaining engaged in discussions despite the alleged threats.
When asked about the reported concerns that Israel could target Iranian negotiators, a U.S. official told The New York Times that negotiations between Washington and Tehran remain active.
According to the newspaper, the official said President Donald Trump wants the peace process “to play out.”
The reports do not indicate that any alleged targeting effort ultimately took place, but they describe the concerns as significant enough for U.S. officials to privately communicate warnings through regional intermediaries during the negotiations.
The reported outreach underscores the sensitivity surrounding the diplomatic effort as both sides sought to continue talks despite ongoing tensions.
The Israeli Embassy in Washington declined to comment on the reported concerns, according to The New York Times.
The reports from The New York Times and The Washington Post describe a behind-the-scenes diplomatic effort in which U.S. officials reportedly sought to prevent actions they believed could jeopardize ongoing negotiations. According to the newspapers, Washington viewed the continuation of the talks as a priority and took steps through intermediaries to warn Tehran of what officials believed was a potential threat against senior members of Iran’s negotiating team while discussions remained underway.
