Iran is denying that it had any involvement in last weekend's assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump or allegations about having any "intention for such an action."
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani said in a statement that Iran "strongly rejects any involvement in the recent armed attack on Trump or claims about Iran's intention for such an action, considering such allegations to have malicious political motives and objectives," reports The Washington Post on Thursday.
According to reports, the Biden administration had told the Secret Service about an unspecified threat from Iran concerning Trump before his July 13 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, where shots were fired at the former president as he spoke.
Authorities are still trying to learn more information about Saturday's attempt on Trump. Secret Service agents shot and killed the shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of nearby Bethel Park, Pennsylvania.
U.S. officials said they do not believe the shooting, which left Trump with an injury to his ear, killed one rallygoer, and injured two others, was related to any efforts from Iran.
Intelligence officials have been saying that Iran may be planning to avenge the killing of commander Qasem Soleimani, who died in 2020 in a drone strike ordered by then-President Trump.
Trump said the action was made to "stop a war" rather than start one.
But Wednesday, Iran's U.N. mission, in a statement to the state-operated Islamic Republic News Agency, said that it will pursue legal actions, not deadly, against Trump.
The mission described the former president as a "criminal" who deserved prosecution for Soleimani's death, and said that Iran has "chosen the legal path to bring him to justice."
The Tehran Times in January said Iran had plans to seek action through the International Court of Justice over the commander's death.
U.S. National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson said Tuesday, though, that the agency has been tracking threats from Iran against former Trump administration officials for years, adding, "We consider this a national and homeland security matter of the highest priority."
The Secret Service has enhanced protections for Trump after the threat alert from Iran, according to a national security official, speaking anonymously while discussing security decisions.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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