Why Israel Tried To Topple Iran Regime With Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Why the Plan Failed
A New York Times report says Israeli intelligence spent years secretly cultivating former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as a possible future leader of Iran. The report claims the effort included meetings in Budapest, covert funding, and a failed attempt to move him to safety after an Israeli strike. Ahmadinejad’s office denied the allegations, and Israel has not commented.
Former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was secretly cultivated by Israeli intelligence for years as part of an effort to position him as a possible future leader of Iran, according to a report citing American, Iranian and former intelligence officials. The New York Times said Mossad tried to build a relationship with Ahmadinejad after his ties with Iran’s current leadership deteriorated, while Ahmadinejad’s office denied the allegations.
The report said the alleged operation unfolded over several years and included contacts outside Iran, including meetings in Budapest in 2024 and 2025. It also said Iranian authorities later uncovered the contacts, leading to house arrest and IRGC monitoring, though the allegations have not been independently verified and neither Israeli officials nor Mossad have commented. Donald Trump Threatens To Target Iran’s Power Plants, Bridges Unless Tehran Returns to Talks (Watch Video).
Ahmadinejad’s Political Fallout
Ahmadinejad’s relationship with Iran’s leadership reportedly worsened after he left office in 2013. He was barred from running for president three times and increasingly criticized senior figures, leaving him politically isolated but still interested in a return if the system changed.
According to the report, Israeli intelligence saw that tension as an opening. Former close associate Abdolreza Davari said: "Ahmadinejad would not do this for money. He has money; he has a wide economic network. He would do it for power. He wants to be at the helm of power,". Iran Plane Arrives in Houthi-Controlled Yemen After Strike on Sanaa Airport.
Alleged Meetings Between Ahmadinejad and Mossad
The report said one of the secret meetings took place in Budapest in 2024 during a Ludovika University climate conference. The university’s rector, Gergely Deli, said Ahmadinejad and Israeli intelligence personnel held secret discussions during the event, according to the newspaper’s account.
It also said Ahmadinejad returned to Hungary in 2025 and met Mossad officials again. Former US officials told the newspaper that then-Mossad chief David Barnea traveled to Budapest to meet him, and that Israel allegedly paid for Ahmadinejad’s travel and lodging during the meetings.
The Failed Endgame
The report said the alleged plan reached a final stage during the early days of the US-Israel war on Iran this year. It claimed an Israeli airstrike hit Ahmadinejad’s compound in Tehran, after which a black Peugeot car allegedly driven by Mossad operatives took him to a secret safe house inside Iran.
But the operation did not succeed, according to the report. It said Ahmadinejad later became dissatisfied with the arrangement, lost confidence in Israel’s broader plan to bring him back to power, and eventually left the safe house under unclear circumstances.
After leaving the safe house, Ahmadinejad reportedly disappeared from public view for several months. He resurfaced last Monday at the funeral procession of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, according to the report.
Iranian authorities later alleged that Ahmadinejad had contacts with Israel and said he was under house arrest and being monitored by the IRGC intelligence wing. His spokesman declined to comment, and Israeli officials and Mossad did not respond to the claims
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 15, 2026 04:23 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).