“We are seeking to, God willing, kill Trump and Pompeo.” This statement was made by Amir Ali Hajizadeh, commander of the IRGC Aerospace Force, on a TV program on February 24, 2023. Now, after the assassination attempt on Donald Trump, the Iranian regime has backtracked, claiming it never intended to assassinate him.
Nasser Kanaani, spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, said on Wednesday, July 17: “Iran is pursuing legal action against Donald Trump but strongly denies any involvement in the recent armed attack on Trump or claims of intent to do so, considering such claims to have malicious political motives.”
After the killing of Qassem Soleimani, commander of the IRGC Quds Force, in a U.S. operation in Baghdad on January 3, 2020, Iranian regime officials promised “severe revenge.” This phrase has become a key term in subsequent years.
On January 8, 2020, the IRGC targeted a U.S. base in the Ain al-Asad region of Iraq in an operation that resulted in no casualties, later revealed to have been coordinated with the Americans to strike an empty base.
Since then, Iranian regime officials have consistently promised to avenge Soleimani’s death on various occasions.
In December 2020, near the end of Trump’s presidency, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei promised in a speech that “revenge on the orderer and killer of Qassem Soleimani” was certain.
Following these remarks, Khamenei’s Twitter account posted a graphic depicting Trump on a golf course under the shadow of a drone, a veiled reference to his assassination.
This post has now been removed from Khamenei’s Twitter account (now known as X).
Khamenei’s official website also produced and released an animation showing forces dressed in IRGC uniforms using a robot to assassinate Trump, referencing Khamenei’s promise.
Ismail Qaani, Soleimani’s successor in the IRGC Quds Force, delivered a speech in January 2021 on the anniversary of his death in the Iranian Parliament.
In this speech, he again threatened Trump with assassination, saying: “The American agents involved in the assassination of Martyr Soleimani should learn the secretive lifestyle of Salman Rushdie because the Iranian regime will avenge the unjustly shed blood of Martyr Soleimani.”
Salman Rushdie is a British author whose assassination fatwa was issued by Ruhollah Khomeini, the founder of the Iranian regime, with a bounty placed on his head.
Rushdie was attacked in 2022, losing the sight in one eye and the use of one hand.
Member of Parliament and the Three Million Dollar Bounty
Ahmad Hamzeh, a member of the 12th Parliament, announced a three million dollar bounty for Trump’s assassination from the parliamentary podium on January 21, 2020. This statement was met with a reaction from Robert Wood, the U.S. disarmament envoy.
Qaani’s Second Threat: Trump is Under the Watchful Eye of the World’s Free People
On the anniversary of Soleimani’s killing in January 2022, the Quds Force commander again threatened Trump, this time saying: “The enemy thought with the crime they committed and the basest act they performed, it was over, but Trump and others who were with him are all clear to us. From [Mike] Pompeo, whom no one has humiliated as much as Martyr Soleimani, to the President of the United States and all those involved in this crime are under the watchful eye of (not just Muslims, but) the free people of the world.”
Hajizadeh: If We Can, We Want to Kill Trump
In February 2023, Amir Ali Hajizadeh, commander of the IRGC Aerospace Force, claimed on a TV program: “Killing these people (American soldiers) was not our goal. God willing, we want to kill Trump, Pompeo, [Frank] McKenzie, and the military commanders who issued the order (to kill Qassem Soleimani). But ultimately, they had performed a military action, and we also had to respond militarily.”
