Threat of Hezbollah drone attacks could possibly push Netanyahu to postpone son's wedding

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu plans to postpone his son's wedding, fearing drone attacks amid the ongoing Israeli wars in Gaza and Lebanon, according to local media on Wednesday.

The wedding of Avner Netanyahu is planned for November 26 in the Sharon region, north of Tel Aviv.

Netanyahu fears that holding the wedding as planned could risk the safety of participants and wants to postpone the event, the Israeli public broadcaster KAN reported.

There was no comment from Netanyahu’s office on the report.

On Oct. 19, a Hezbollah drone hit the window of Netanyahu’s bedroom in Caesarea in northern Israel.

Israel has launched a massive air campaign in Lebanon since last month against what it claims are Hezbollah targets in an escalation from a year of cross-border warfare between Israel and the group since the start of Israel’s brutal offensive on Gaza.

Over 2,700 people have been killed and nearly 12,500 injured in Israeli attacks since October last year, according to Lebanese health authorities.

Israel expanded the conflict on Oct. 1 this year by launching an incursion into southern Lebanon.

In September, Netanyahu requested enhanced security for his son in the US due to concerns over retaliation by Iran following the assassination of Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh in the capital Tehran.

Yair Netanyahu, 33, has been living in Miami, Florida since April 2023 under the protection of Israel's Shin Bet internal security service. The cost of his security detail is approximately 2.5 million shekels (around $680,000) per year, according to the Israeli news website Walla.

Netanyahu recently asked for security measures to be tightened for Yair out of fear that Iran's response and that of its proxies to Haniyeh’s assassination might be to target Israeli figures and assets abroad, the website noted.

Walla cited unnamed sources close to Netanyahu who said that the director general of the Prime Minister’s Office, Yossi Shelley, recently approached the Shin Bet's Advisory Committee for Personal Security to request a review of the security level around Yair.

The sources added that the advisory committee has asked for intelligence material to justify the increased security.

Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran on July 31 in an attack attributed to Tel Aviv, although Israel has not officially claimed responsibility. Senior Iranian officials have vowed to retaliate.