Does Iran Try to Assassinate Donald Trump? Here is What We Know

  • Trump Claims Iran Wants Him Dead: Former President Trump alleges Iran is behind assassination attempts against him, prompting the question, did Iran try to assassinate him, and escalating tensions between the nations.
  • Iran Denies Involvement: Iranian officials strongly deny any plot to kill Trump, calling the accusations fabricated and blaming Israel for stirring conflict.
  • Possibility of U.S. Strikes Looms: Trump warns Iran of obliteration if an attack occurs and hints at ordering strikes on Iranโ€™s nuclear sites within weeks.

Just days after reports revealed that Donald Trump rejected Israelโ€™s plan to assassinate Iranโ€™s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the former president made a chilling public remark: the U.S. knows exactly where Khamenei is and is sparing him โ€œfor now.โ€

Israel openly calls for Khameneiโ€™s death

The tension surrounding Khameneiโ€™s fate is far from theoretical. Israelโ€™s top brass has begun openly demanding his death. Defense Minister Israel Katz didnโ€™t mince words this week when he declared that Khamenei โ€œcan no longer be allowed to exist.โ€ Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu echoed the sentiment during an appearance on Fox News, insisting that Khamenei sees Trump as โ€œpublic enemy number oneโ€ and urging the United States to join forces in taking Iran head-on.

The lingering shadow of the Soleimani strike

For Israel, the rhetoric is not just talkโ€”itโ€™s a push to drag the U.S. further into its shadow war with Iran. And theyโ€™re using Trumpโ€™s safety as leverage. At the same time, Washington continues to walk a tightrope. The U.S. is still haunted by backlash from past interventions in the Middle East, most notably the killing of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani in 2020โ€”a strike ordered by Trump himself.

That drone strike outside Baghdad International Airport sent shockwaves across the region. Soleimani, who led the Quds Force of Iranโ€™s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, had eluded Western assassination attempts for decades. But in 2020, he didnโ€™t survive. The carefully orchestrated operation was hailed by some in the West as a bold move to neutralize a terror threatโ€”but to others, especially in Iran, it was seen as cold-blooded murder. Iranโ€™s then-foreign minister called it nothing short of international terrorism.

U.S. intelligence points to possible Iranian retaliation

Fast forward to 2024, and U.S. intelligence agencies believe the tables may have turned. According to federal sources, Tehran began actively exploring ways to assassinate Trump, who was at that point campaigning to retake the White House. In September, Trump himself warned of โ€œbig threats on my life by Iran.โ€ While two attempts on his life were reported during the summer campaign season, neither was directly linked to Iranโ€”at least not officially.

Murder-for-hire plots raise alarm

Alarming signs kept mounting. In one chilling case, a Pakistani national with alleged ties to Iran tried to hire hitmen to kill U.S. government officialsโ€”but ended up approaching undercover agents, according to prosecutors. Then came an even more explosive twist in November: Farhad Shakeri, a fugitive Iranian government operative, allegedly plotted to hire two men he met in prison for an assassination. One of the intended targets? Donald Trump.

An FBI complaint revealed Shakeri confessed that Iranian officials ordered him to abandon his other missions and concentrate entirely on tracking and eventually eliminating the former president. The revelation sent shockwaves through political and intelligence communities, igniting fear, outrage, and renewed calls for heightened security.

Trump promises devastating retaliation

Trump responded as only Trump canโ€”bluntly and with menace. Speaking in February, he said any assassination attempt on him by Iran would trigger massive retaliation. โ€œNot because of me,โ€ he explained, โ€œbut if they did that, they would be obliterated. That would be the end. Iโ€™ve left instructions: if they do it, they get obliterated. There wonโ€™t be anything left.โ€

Iran denies everything and blames Israel

Iran, for its part, flatly denied the accusations. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi dismissed the claims as political theater, saying on social media that they were part of โ€œa new scenarioโ€ cooked up to sow more division. โ€œThe American people have made their decision. And Iran respects their right to elect the president of their choice,โ€ he wrote. โ€œThe path forward is also a choice. It begins with respect.โ€

Iranian officials doubled down in interviews. Spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei claimed it was a โ€œrepulsiveโ€ Israeli plot to wreck already-fragile relations between Tehran and Washington. Even Iranโ€™s newly elected President Masoud Pezeshkian chimed in, saying Iran โ€œnever attemptedโ€ to kill Trump and never would. โ€œThis is another one of those schemes that Israel and other countries are designing to promote Iranophobia,โ€ he told NBC News. โ€œAt least as far as I know.โ€

Pressed on whether Iran had ever plotted against Trump, Pezeshkian answered unequivocally: โ€œNone whatsoever.โ€

Netanyahu insists Iran has tried twice to assassinate Trump

But Netanyahu hasnโ€™t let up. In mid-June, he appeared once again on Fox News, asking why a regime that chants โ€œDeath to Americaโ€ and โ€œtried to assassinate President Trump twiceโ€ should ever be trusted with nuclear weapons. Host Bret Baier pressed him for clarity: had Iran really tried to assassinate Trump?

โ€œThrough proxies, yes,โ€ Netanyahu replied. โ€œThrough their intel, yes, they want to kill him. Heโ€™s enemy number one.โ€

Carlson and Cruz call for a hard response

The statement sent a jolt through political circles. If Israelโ€™s Prime Minister was publicly accusing Iran of attempting to assassinate a former U.S. presidentโ€”twiceโ€”shouldnโ€™t that trigger a military response?

Thatโ€™s the argument being made by conservative firebrands like Tucker Carlson. Speaking to Senator Ted Cruz, Carlson questioned why the U.S. hadnโ€™t bombed Tehran yet, if the threats were real. โ€œWe should attack Iran immediately if thatโ€™s true,โ€ he said.

Cruz didnโ€™t blink. โ€œNobody disputesโ€ Iranโ€™s intent to kill Trump, he said. โ€œItโ€™s an objective fact.โ€

Trump may strike Iranian nuclear sites soon

And now, the world is watching what Trump will do next. On Thursday, he dropped yet another bombshell. In a statement read by White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, Trump said he would decide within two weeks whether to launch U.S. airstrikes on Iranian nuclear sites. The choice, he said, depends on whether Iran comes to the negotiating table.

โ€œBased on the fact that thereโ€™s a substantial chance of negotiations that may or may not take place with Iran in the near future, I will make my decision whether or not to go within the next two weeks,โ€ the statement read.

The Middle East is already burning

This comes on the heels of another deadly week in the Middle East. According to officials, more than 600 people have been killed in strikes between Iran and Israelโ€”including at least two dozen Iranians. The bloodshed shows no sign of stopping.

At the heart of all this is a question thatโ€™s both chilling and urgent: Is Iran really trying to kill Donald Trump? And if so, how close have they come?

Itโ€™s a question that could ignite a warโ€”or, perhaps, push two enemies toward an uneasy peace. But one thing is certain: the world is on edge, and time is running out.

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