US Feared Israel Would Assassinate Iranian Negotiators to Torpedo Pakistan-Brokered Peace Talks

WASHINGTON D.C. - In a startling revelation that underscores the widening chasm between Washington and Tel Aviv, senior US officials reportedly believed that Israel was actively plotting to assassinate Iran's top negotiators during the critical peace talks brokered by Pakistan earlier this year. The plot, which targeted Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, was seen as a direct attempt to derail the fragile diplomatic process that the Trump administration was pursuing .

According to a report by The New York Times, the US intelligence community concluded that any Israeli strike on the two key Iranian figures would have instantly collapsed the negotiations and reignited the devastating war that had crippled the region since February . The report highlights the stunning reality of a so-called "ally" being so extreme in its opposition to peace that it was willing to assassinate officials engaged in crucial dialogue with the United States .

A Dangerous Drift in Objectives

The revelations illuminate how the war goals of the United States and Israel, initially aligned, "quickly diverged drastically" . While the US pivoted toward a diplomatic solution to end the conflict and stabilize the global energy market, Israel remained profoundly skeptical, viewing the ceasefire as a failure that did not achieve its ultimate objective of regime change in Tehran .

Sources indicated that the US was so alarmed by the possible Israeli move that it asked regional countries to warn Iran directly about the threat to Araghchi and Ghalibaf . This unusual backchannel communication demonstrates the depth of Washington's concern that its own partner was attempting to sabotage its primary foreign policy initiative.

The Islamabad Incident: A Near-Miss

A specific incident in April brought the tension to a head. As Ghalibaf was returning to Tehran from a meeting in Islamabad with US Vice President JD Vance, the Iranian delegation received chilling intelligence . Iranian security forces reportedly warned that two Israeli fighter jets had entered Iranian airspace from Iraq and were poised to attack the aircraft carrying the Parliament Speaker .

The plane was forced to make an emergency landing in Mashhad, and the delegation completed its journey to Tehran overland in a harrowing eight-hour road trip . Mahdi Mohammadi, a senior adviser to Ghalibaf, confirmed the account on social media .

"A Government Terrified of Peace"

The attempted assassination plot, which was temporarily shelved by Israel at the start of negotiations but remained a looming threat, has been met with astonishment in diplomatic circles . It reveals an Israeli government so obsessed with its own military agenda that it actively sought to undermine its closest ally's diplomatic efforts .

The report comes just days after the US and Iran concluded another round of indirect talks in Doha, focusing on maritime security and the unfreezing of Iranian funds, with no apparent breakthrough on the broader peace settlement . As the world watches, the chilling reality remains: Israel is so terrified of peace that it is willing to assassinate those who seek it .