Netanyahu Says He Beat Early Prostate Cancer

Benjamin Netanyahu says a minor cancer scare is now firmly in the rearview mirror. As the BBC reports, Israel's 76-year-old prime minister disclosed Friday that doctors recently detected an early-stage malignant prostate tumor during routine follow-up checks after surgery for an enlarged benign prostate. In a post on X, he said the growth—"a tiny spot of less than a centimeter"—was removed and that treatment "left no trace of it," adding he is "in excellent physical condition." Netanyahu said he asked to delay releasing his annual medical report by two months so the news wouldn't surface "at the height of the war, to prevent the Iranian terror regime from spreading further false propaganda against Israel," per the Washington Post.

Explaining his decision to get treated quickly, Netanyahu wrote that when he receives early warnings, he moves to neutralize the threat—"on the national level and also on the personal level." The disclosure comes ahead of a planned White House visit as Washington pushes for a longer-term peace arrangement in the war with Iran. Meanwhile, a ceasefire with Lebanon, following clashes with Iran-backed Hezbollah, has been extended by three weeks.