Iran has categorically denied US claims that Tehran planned to kill former President Donald Trump, calling the claims “completely unfounded.”
Farhad Shakeri, an Afghan national, has previously been charged by the US Department of Justice with plotting Trump’s murder on behalf of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
Shakeri’s allegations that he had received orders from the IRGC in September 2024 to plan Trump’s murder and conduct surveillance in advance of the US presidential election were the basis for the charges.
Esmail Baghaei, the spokesperson for Iran’s Foreign Ministry, denied the US allegations in a statement released on Saturday, calling it a “repulsive conspiracy” hatched by Israel and other anti-Iranian groups to inflame tensions between Iran and the US.
Baghaei denied any role in the purported conspiracy and emphasised that Iran will protect its rights using “legitimate and legal means”. He said that prior claims against Iran had been similarly unfounded.
US officials claim that Shakeri, who is thought to be in Iran, provided information about the scheme to law enforcement.
According to reports, Shakeri informed investigators that he was under pressure from an IRGC officer to plan the killing, suggesting that the Iranian government was prepared to provide a substantial amount of funding for the operation.
Additionally, Shakeri asserted that the plan was postponed because it was anticipated that Trump would lose the election, implying that it would be “easier” to execute the scheme after the election.
The Justice Department insisted, however, that the scheme and other purported Iranian agent-targeted activities against US persons continue to be a component of Iran’s larger effort to intimidate or silence those who disagree with its government.
