The United States of America Justice Department has accused Iran of plotting the assassination of President-elect Donald Trump.
A director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Christopher Wray said charges announced so far show Iran’s continued effort in targeting US citizens including the President-elect.
“The charges announced today expose Iran’s continued brazen attempts to target US citizens, including President-elect Donald Trump,” Mr Wray said.
During the FBI’s investigation into another case, a 51-year-old man from Iran with Afghan citizenship said that a few weeks before the US presidential election, he had been instructed by Iran to present and implement a plan to assassinate Mr Trump.
The investigators consider the statements to be credible.
A few weeks ago, Mr Trump’s campaign team announced that it had been informed by the U.S. Secret Service about real and concrete threats from Iran to assassinate him.
The US judiciary has brought charges against the 51-year-old and two other men also accused of plotting to assassinate an Iranian dissident.
Arrest warrants have been issued for the men.
“There are few actors in the world that pose as grave a threat to the national security of the United States as does Iran,” warned Attorney General Merrick Garland.
“We will not stand for the Iranian regime’s attempts to endanger the American people and America’s national security,” Mr Gerland insisted.
In his first term as US president, Mr Trump withdrew from the nuclear agreement with Iran, imposed new sanctions against the country
He also classified the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps as a terrorist organisation.
In 2020, the US military killed Iranian General Qassem Soleimani in a drone strike in the Iraqi capital Baghdad on Mr Trump’s orders
