Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has ignited global shockwaves by accusing Israel of orchestrating a failed assassination attempt during the recent 12-day Iran-Israel war. The alleged bombing, which struck a secret meeting and killed several Iranian officials, now threatens to derail fragile nuclear talks and deepen Middle East hostilities.
Iran’s President Claims Israel Tried to Eliminate Him—Right Before “Peace” Talks
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian didn’t mince words when he told the world that Israel made a play for his life during the recent 12-day war. According to Pezeshkian, Israeli forces bombed a meeting he was attending, aiming for a decapitation strike right as Iran and the US were preparing for nuclear negotiations. You can’t make this stuff up: supposedly, the world’s peacemakers were all set for friendly chats, and then, boom—Israel allegedly tries to remove the head of the Iranian government. Pezeshkian’s televised interview aired just days after the fighting, adding gasoline to an already raging diplomatic fire.
Pezeshkian emphasized, for whatever it’s worth, that the United States was not behind the attempt on his life. American officials have been quick to distance themselves from Israel’s operation, but the timing of the strike—right before scheduled talks—raises more than a few eyebrows. Iran, for its part, responded to Israel’s attacks with its own barrage of drone and missile strikes, resulting in dozens of Israeli casualties. Still, the main event was the claim that Israel, in the thick of global diplomacy, went ahead and tried to assassinate a sitting head of state. If the goal was to keep the region on a knife’s edge, mission accomplished.
A Pattern of Escalation: Bombs, Assassinations, and Broken Talks
This isn’t Israel’s first rodeo when it comes to targeting Iranian officials. Over the past decade, multiple Iranian nuclear scientists and military figures have been taken out under mysterious—and not so mysterious—circumstances, with Iran pointing the finger squarely at Israel every time. But never before has Israel allegedly gone so far as to directly target the Iranian president himself, and certainly not on Iranian soil while the ink was still wet on the latest round of diplomatic invitations.
🇮🇱🇮🇷❗Israel war Minister confess on Israeli national TV that they wanted to assassinate Ayatollah Khamenei during war but they couldn't find him
They actually tried twice during war but they had bad intels
The reason trump and Netanyahu said during war we don't want to do it… pic.twitter.com/XRwmH1lOnJ
— Monitor𝕏 (@MonitorX99800) June 27, 2025
The 12-day war that kicked off on June 13, 2025, saw Israel unleash a barrage of airstrikes targeting Iranian military commanders and nuclear scientists. The strikes reportedly killed over 900 Iranians, including 30 commanders and 11 nuclear scientists. Iran’s retaliation was swift and predictable: waves of drones and missiles struck Israeli targets, killing at least 28. Amid the carnage, nuclear negotiations between Tehran and Washington came to a screeching halt, with Pezeshkian demanding guarantees against further Israeli attacks before talks could resume. The trust deficit—which was already a mile wide—has now become a canyon.
Diplomacy in Shambles and the Usual Suspects Run for Cover
The international response has been the usual cocktail of cautious statements and strategic silence. The United States insists it had nothing to do with the attempted hit, while Israel, in classic fashion, refuses to confirm or deny anything. In the meantime, nuclear negotiations are dead in the water. Pezeshkian’s reformist agenda—if it ever had a chance—now faces a wall of skepticism from Iranian hardliners, who are already using the assassination attempt as “proof” that talking to the West is a fool’s errand. For his part, Pezeshkian told the world he’s ready to return to the table, but only if there are ironclad assurances that Israel won’t try to kill him again during the appetizers.
Holy F'ck 🔥
Israel took out virtually every military leader in Iran in this decapitation strike on their Nuclear facilities
Approx (200) Israeli warplanes involved
The Mossad had drones set up inside Iran that took out air defenses and missile sites pic.twitter.com/vxSZz7gc9w
— @Chicago1Ray 🇺🇸 (@Chicago1Ray) June 13, 2025
The broader fallout is as predictable as ever: oil markets on edge, regional proxies sharpening their knives, and the world’s diplomats wringing their hands while the Middle East teeters on the edge of another explosion. The so-called experts warn that unless someone manages to patch up the trust between these nuclear rivals, we’re headed for a fresh round of escalation—one that could finally make the last decade’s chaos look tame.
Sources:
Le Monde: Iran’s President accuses Israel of assassination attempt amid nuclear talks
The Week: Iran President claims Israel tried to assassinate him, says US not involved
Times of Israel: Iran President claims Israel tried to kill him in missile strike