Chants of “death to America” from Iranian hard-liners have been heard for decades, but in recent days, officials and clerics close to the government have escalated the rhetoric with threats against President Trump to avenge the killing of their country’s supreme leader.
The calls may reflect Iranians venting pent up anger after the weeklong funeral ceremonies for the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, which were followed by a weekend of escalating U.S. strikes on the country, one expert said. Some mourners at the funeral events held red banners, a Muslim Shiite symbol of vengeance, declaring, “We Will Kill Trump.”
The threats grew louder after a rare statement over the weekend from the leader’s son and successor, Mojtaba Khamenei.
“We pledge that we will avenge your pure blood and the blood of all those martyred in these two wars from the criminal and disgraced killers,” he said. “This revenge is the demand of our nation, and it must certainly be carried out.”
A minority of hard-liners in Iran’s leadership has sought in recent days to thwart diplomacy to broker a lasting peace deal with the United States. As internal tensions in government unfurled last week, Iran’s powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps targeted several commercial ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway vital to transporting energy supplies.
That set off new retaliatory airstrikes by the United States as the escalating attacks imperiled a cease-fire reached almost a month ago.
Mr. Khamenei was killed in the opening strikes of U.S.-Israel war on Iran in late February and his son was injured in the attack.
“No one should be surprised, given where we are at, that there will be elements within the Iranian regime that do want the assassination of Trump as the ultimate revenge,” said Ellie Geranmayeh, an Iran expert at the European Council on Foreign Relations. “Is that the majority? I don’t think so. Is that is that a state policy? I’ve seen no evidence of that.”
She said allowing the hard-liners to “let off some steam” in this way may ease pressure from them to derail the diplomatic efforts to reach a lasting U.S.-Iran peace deal.
Mojtaba Khamenei did not appear in public at any of the funeral events fueling questions not only about his health, but about whether he is really running Iran at this pivotal moment. His call after the funeral was over to avenge his father’s death appears to have given a green light for others to follow with similar threats.
“We must take action against those who ordered, carried out, and assisted in the attempt on our beloved leader’s life, as well as those who targeted our fellow citizens,” Ali Bagheri Kani, deputy secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said on Monday, according to Iranian state-controlled media.
A senior cleric close to Iran’s government, Ayatollah Mohsen Araki, issued a “call for revenge” against Mr. Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel.
Mr. Trump declared the unstable cease-fire with Iran “over,” last Wednesday at a NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, after Iran attacked commercial container ships in the Strait of Hormuz. The United States responded with heavy airstrikes on Iran through the weekend.
Mr. Trump last week said he was Iran’s “number one target.” But Iranian officials have stopped short of specifically calling for Mr. Trump’s death.
“The enemy’s propaganda gestures will not deter us from pursuing justice against them,” said Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman, Esmaeil Baghaei, according to Iranian state media reports on Monday. “We will not hesitate to defend ourselves. However, when and how we respond is a matter that will be determined by the armed forces.
The anger of Iranian hard-liners toward Mr. Trump has built over years. He reimposed harsh economic sanctions on Iran in 2019, which was followed in 2020 by the American assassination of a top Iranian military commander, Maj. Gen. Qassim Suleimani.
The U.S.-Israel war that began on Feb. 28 has further strangled Iran’s economy.
The public backlash also extended to some Iranians celebrating over the weekend the death of Sen. Lindsey Graham, a Republican from South Carolina who was a staunch supporter of Israel.
“Fortunately, in such matters it must be said that the Angel of Death is just,” Mr. Baghaei said Monday, when asked about Mr. Graham, according to Iranian state-controlled media.
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