‘Act of war’: Biden faces pressure on Iran’s plot against Trump
The U.S. Department of Justice recently unsealed new charges detailing a thwarted murder-for-hire plot that the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) ordered against former President Donald Trump in the weeks leading up to the election. This revelation has added new pressure for the Biden administration to take action.
According to a newly unsealed criminal complaint filed in the Southern District of New York, the IRGC ordered an Iranian asset in September to focus on surveilling and putting together a plan to assassinate Trump before the Nov. 5 elections. Campaign officials confirmed that Trump was briefed by U.S. intelligence officials in September about threats from Iran to assassinate him.
President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken had previously stated that they considered any Iranian threats against Trump to be a top-tier national security issue. They also warned that any attempt by the IRGC to harm Trump would be met with kinetic military action equivalent to an act of war.
The IRGC, a military and counterintelligence agency designated as a terrorist organization during Trump’s first term, has targeted Trump since 2020 when he ordered a strike to take out Qassem Soleimani, the late Iranian Quds Force commander. News of the thwarted attack on Trump comes after he survived two earlier and unrelated assassination attempts earlier this year while campaigning for a second term as president.
The threats from Iran prompted the Secret Service to increase security around the Trump campaign in recent months. It remains unclear how Trump plans to further enhance security at his residences in the months before his inauguration.
U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland stated that Iran poses a grave threat to the national security of the United States. The Department of Justice is preparing charges against Iran over its efforts to influence the 2024 election cycle.
In the criminal complaint, U.S. prosecutors revealed that an unnamed official in the IRGC had directed the Iranian asset, Farhad Shakeri, to surveil and assassinate Trump. Shakeri, who is believed to be living in Iran, immigrated to the United States as a child but was deported in 2008 after serving time for a robbery conviction.
Federal prosecutors have also charged and arrested individuals in connection with a plot to murder a U.S. citizen of Iranian origin in New York. The Department of Justice declined to comment on the ongoing threats and investigation.
The revelation of the thwarted plot against Trump underscores the ongoing tensions between the U.S. and Iran. The Biden administration faces mounting pressure to respond to these threats and ensure the safety of all U.S. citizens, regardless of political affiliation. The security of the nation remains a top priority, and any attempts to harm individuals, especially former presidents, will be met with swift and decisive action.
