Benjamin Netanyahu reveals battle with early-stage prostate cancer

George Bunn
Fri, 24 Apr 2026 20:26:15 +0000

Benjamin Netanyahu has announced he received successful treatment for early-stage prostate cancer, without specifying when it took place.

In a statement on social media, the 76-year-old Israeli Prime Minister said an early-stage malignant tumour had been discovered during a routine checkup.

Mr Netanyahu said "targeted treatment" had removed "the problem" and left no trace of it.

According to the medical report, which otherwise said the Likud leader was in good health, Mr Netanyahu was treated with radiation therapy for early-stage prostate cancer.

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The longest-serving prime minister in Israel's history said that he had delayed the release of the medical report by two months to prevent Iran from spreading "false propaganda against Israel".

In March, during the fighting with Iran, rumors that circulated on social media and aired on Iranian state media claimed that Mr Netanyahu had died.

The Israeli leader recorded a video of himself visiting a Jerusalem cafe in March to refute the claims.

Mr Netanyahu underwent surgery on his prostate in 2024 after he was diagnosed with a urinary tract infection resulting from a benign prostate enlargement. In 2023, he was fitted with a pacemaker.

In a statement, the Israeli Prime Minister said: "I had a minor medical issue with my prostate that was completely treated. Thank God, it’s behind me.

"When I’m given information in time about a potential danger, I want to address it immediately. This is true on the national level and also on the personal level."

He is scheduled to visit the White House as Washington is increasing its pressure on Israel to agree to a comprehensive peace deal with Iran.

President Donald Trump confirmed a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon had been extended by three weeks.

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Mr Netanyahu has served as Israeli Prime Minister since 2022, having previously held the role between 1996 and 1999, and again between 2009 and 2021.

Elections are due to be held in Israel by October, with current polling between the parties supporting the Prime Minister and those opposed on a knife edge.

According to the poll by Channel 12 News, the parties opposed to Mr Netanyahu win 60 seats, one short of the 61 needed to form a government.

The pro-Netanyahu bloc would hold 50 Knesset seats, with the Prime Minister's party holding half of those. The hard-right wing Otzma Yehudit party, led by Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and MK Arye Dery's ultra-Orthodox Shas party each win nine seats.

The war in Lebanon, which Israel invaded last month to root out Iran's Hezbollah allies after the militant group fired across the border, has run in parallel with the wider Iran war, and Tehran says a ceasefire there is a precondition for talks.

There was little sign of an end to the fighting in southern Lebanon, however, as authorities reported two people were killed by an Israeli strike and Hezbollah downed an Israeli drone.

While the ceasefire that came into force on April 16 has led to a significant reduction in hostilities, Israel and Hezbollah have continued to trade blows in southern Lebanon, where Israel has kept soldiers in a self-declared "buffer zone".

Responding to the extension, Hezbollah lawmaker Ali Fayyad said, "It is essential to point out that the ceasefire is meaningless in light of Israel's insistence on hostile acts, including assassinations, shelling, and gunfire" and its demolition of villages and towns in the south.

Israel's military said it had killed six armed Hezbollah members in southern Lebanon earlier today.

Palestinian officials said Israeli fire killed at least 12 people including six police officers across Gaza on Friday.

Local medics said Israeli strike in Gaza City killed three people, including two police; tank shelling killed two in Beit Lahiya; and a strike on Khan Younis in the south killed seven including four police.

The Israeli military confirmed it had conducted a strike on Gaza City and said it was targeting Hamas terrorists. The military did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the other reported strikes. Israel and Hamas have exchanged blame for ceasefire violations.

More than 72,000 Gazans have been killed since the war started in October 2023, most of them civilians, according to Gaza's health authorities. Hamas' October 7, 2023, attacks on Israel killed 1,200 people, according to Israeli tallies.