Iran dismissed on Wednesday the "malicious" allegations from US media that it was involved in a plan to assassinate former US President Donald Trump. CNN reported on Tuesday that US authorities had received intelligence from a "human source" several weeks ago about an alleged Iranian plot against the former president, leading to an increase in his security. Other US media outlets also covered the alleged plot. CNN clarified that the alleged plot was not connected to the shooting at a Trump campaign rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday, where the former president was injured and a supporter was killed.
The US National Security Council stated that it has been monitoring Iranian threats against former Trump administration officials for years, following Tehran's threats of retaliation for the 2020 killing of Revolutionary Guards commander Qasem Soleimani in a US drone strike in neighboring Iraq. Iran's mission to the United Nations described the accusations as "unsubstantiated and malicious". Nasser Kanani, the foreign ministry spokesman, emphasized that Iran "strongly rejects any involvement in the recent armed attack against Trump". However, he added that Iran remains "determined to prosecute Trump over his direct role in the assassination of General Qasem Soleimani". Soleimani, who led the foreign operations arm of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, was responsible for Iranian military operations throughout the Middle East. Trump authorized his killing in a drone strike near Baghdad airport.
