Former President Donald Trump has escalated tensions with Iran, issuing a chilling threat that the Islamic Republic would be reduced to “smithereens” if it was involved in any attack on a US presidential candidate or former president. His comments come after US intelligence officials reported credible threats from Tehran against Trump’s life, stemming from two alleged assassination attempts in recent months.
“As you know, there have been two assassination attempts on my life that we know of, and they may or may not involve – but possibly do – Iran,” Trump declared at a campaign rally in North Carolina. He went on to say that if he were still president, he would deliver a clear and forceful message to Iran: “If you do anything to harm this person, we are going to blow your largest cities and the country itself to smithereens.”
Trump emphasized that both he and the United States had received “very direct threats” from Iran, making the need for a firm message to Tehran paramount. He argued that the most effective deterrent would be to make it unequivocally clear that any attacks on a former president or a presidential candidate would be met with severe consequences, potentially leading to the complete destruction of Iran.
The former president also expressed his surprise at the extensive security provided to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian during his visit to New York for the United Nations General Assembly, especially considering the alleged threats against Trump. “We have large security forces guarding him, and yet they’re threatening our former president and the leading candidate to become the next president of the United States,” Trump said, referring to himself. This protection is mandated under US treaty obligations with the UN and domestic laws.
Trump’s remarks come at a time of heightened tensions in the Middle East, with world leaders working to prevent a potential conflict between Iran-backed Hezbollah and Israel from escalating into a larger regional war. Iran has denied any involvement in the alleged assassination attempts against Trump, which occurred this summer. The first incident, on July 13, involved a gunman opening fire at a rally in Pennsylvania, killing one person and injuring the presidential candidate. In the aftermath, Trump took to social media to express his threat, stating that if Iran were to kill him, “I hope that America obliterates Iran, wipes it off the face of the Earth.”
A US Senate committee, in a scathing report regarding the security arrangements at the Pennsylvania rally, pointed out that the deployment of elite US Secret Service countersnipers was prompted by “credible intelligence” of a threat. On Wednesday, Trump, now 78 years old, suggested the potential assassin in Pennsylvania may have used “potentially foreign-based apps,” and that the alleged gunman in the second attempt in Florida possessed multiple mobile phones that US authorities have been unable to unlock. Trump demanded that Apple cooperate to access these devices, arguing that the stakes were high.
US Attorney General Merrick Garland condemned the attempted assassination bids, calling them “abhorrent.” “Our nation has now experienced two assassination attempts against the former President in just the last three months. That is abhorrent,” he stated. “The Justice Department will not tolerate violence that strikes at the heart of our democracy. And we will find and hold accountable those who perpetrate it. This must stop.”
In August, the US announced that it had successfully thwarted a plot to assassinate a US official by a Pakistani individual linked to Tehran. This act of retaliation was intended to avenge the killing of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani, who was killed in a 2020 US airstrike in Iraq ordered by then-President Trump. US intelligence agencies have also warned of cyberattacks targeting the presidential campaigns of Trump and rival Kamala Harris, attributed to actors backed by Iran.
