In light of the Israeli Air Force's decision in September to dispatch two F-35 jets to escort Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plane for part of its return flight from the UN General Assembly in New York, Prime Minister Netanyahu's wife, Sara Netanyahu, reportedly made a series of demands.
According to sources close to Netanyahu, after the elimination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, Sara Netanyahu was concerned about a missile strike on the plane, sparking a behind-the-scenes saga of special requests from the Prime Minister's Office (PMO).
Even before Nasrallah's elimination, Sara Netanyahu demanded that the "Wing of Zion" plane be escorted by two fighter jets for the entire route to the United States and back, according to the sources.
The prime minister's military secretary, Ronen Gofman, explored this possibility with Air Force Commander Maj.-Gen.Tomer Bar, who declined. A few days later, following Nasrallah's elimination, the prime minister's office claimed there was a concrete concern over retaliation from Iran or Hezbollah targeting the Wing of Zion plane, leading to a new request for a fighter jet escort on the return trip from New York, specifically for the last leg of the flight from Cyprus.
This request was approved, and the jets were scheduled to escort the Wing of Zion during its landing.
Then, according to the sources, the prime minister's office submitted an additional request to the air force to capture an aerial photograph of the Wing of Zion flanked by fighter jets to show the escort.
The air force declined and instructed the fighter jets to fly behind the Wing of Zion so it would not be visible for photos. Simultaneously, on the Wing of Zion plane, PMO staff requested that the crew and captain fly the plane in a way that would allow passengers to view the fighter jets from the window. The crew also denied this request after consulting with the air force.
In the absence of a photo, the PMO informed the press delegation about the unusual F-35 escort due to missile threat concerns, and headlines about the escort accompanied reports of Netanyahu's return to Israel.
Netanyahu's office responds
The PMO responded, "This is complete fake news and yet another baseless and unrestrained attack on the prime minister's wife. Neither the prime minister nor his wife dealt with any issue related to the 'Wing of Zion' plane or any of its components. Decisions regarding the prime minister's security are solely made by government security officials and are determined within ongoing professional assessments. Additionally, contrary to the false and absurd claim in the report, it should be emphasized that the Prime Minister's Office did not make any so-called 'special requests' to the plane's crew or the air force."
"The security of the prime minister's plane is determined in accordance with the situation assessment and relevant procedures," the IDF said in a statement.
The array of requests and demands from the PMO to the air force again underscores how much Netanyahu and his circle are preoccupied with and concerned about his safety, to the extent of adding tasks to security forces already preoccupied during wartime.
In recent months, Netanyahu’s office requested heightened Shin Bet security around Netanyahu’s son, Yair, who resides in Miami, due to concerns over potential Iranian and proxy responses following high-profile Israeli eliminations.
Traditionally, the “Magen” unit in the PMO was responsible for the prime minister's family security, but at the Netanyahu family's request, it was upgraded and expanded last year, transferring to the Shin Bet’s unit responsible for protecting state symbols. Following the outbreak of the war, due to the high workload, the Shin Bet sought to return the responsibility for Netanyahu's family to Magen, but the organization’s request has consistently been ignored.
The drone launch toward Netanyahu’s home in Caesarea in mid-October again raised the alert level around Netanyahu. Consequently, security was increased around the prime minister, and his family.
For security reasons, the weekly cabinet meeting was moved from its regular location in the PMO to an underground floor in another government building.
Recently, there has been growing speculation that Netanyahu may request to delay or change the location of his testimony in the Case 1000, 2000, and 4000 trials, set to begin in early December at the Jerusalem District Court, also citing security reasons.