Donald Trump has addressed an assassination threat made against him on Iranian state television.
When Trump began his presidency in 2017, the relationship between the United States and Iran quickly deteriorated. The two nations experienced several tensions, including the US pulling out of a nuclear agreement, escalating economic sanctions, attacks on oil tankers, and Iran’s downing of a US military drone. In January 2020, tensions peaked when a US drone strike, ordered by Trump, killed Iran’s top military leader.
After the death of General Qasem Soleimani, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard commanders promised to exact ‘severe revenge.’ Amid protests against Iran’s economic struggles, Trump’s encouragement for protestors to persist has further put him in a precarious position.
The death toll from these protests is the highest Iran has seen during political unrest in decades. In a Politico interview, Trump criticized Ayatollah Khamenei, calling him ‘a sick man who should run his country properly and stop killing people’.
Trump also expressed that it might be ‘time to look for new leaders in Iran,’ leading to a response from the Iranian military spokesperson General Abolfazl Shekarchi. Shekarchi stated: “Trump knows that if any hand of aggression is extended toward our leader, we not only cut that hand but also we will set fire to their world.”
On January 14, Iranian state television displayed an image of Trump surrounded by Secret Service agents at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, hinting at a 2024 assassination attempt with the caption: “This time, [the bullet] won’t miss.”
Amichai Stein, a reporter for i24 News and The Jerusalem Post, shared this on X, providing a translation from Farsi.
In an interview with NewsNation’s Katie Pavlich, Trump responded to the threat, indicating there is a plan should Iran decide to ‘cut that hand’.
He stated: “Well, they shouldn’t be doing it, but I’ve left notification. If anything ever happens, we’re going to blow, the whole country is going to get blown up.”
Trump then criticized President Biden and reiterated his own position on Iran’s threat.
“Originally, Biden should have said something, you know, when they made a statement, we always said, why isn’t Biden saying anything, because he didn’t,” he continued.
“But a president has to defend a president, like if I were here and they were making a threat to somebody, not even a president, but somebody like they did with me, I would absolutely hit them so hard.”
Trump concluded: “I have very firm instructions. Anything happens, they’re going to wipe them off the face of this Earth.”