He was the target of two Iran-backed plots. For Trump, this is personal. 

In recent days, President Trump has suggested the U.S. might get involved with Israel’s escalating strikes against Iran.  

The President warned Iranian civilians to “immediately evacuate Tehran” for safety, and he strenuously denied reports that the U.S. is trying to broker a ceasefire.  

Security analysts around the world are trying to predict the next steps for America, which until now, has not participated in the bombing of Iran. One factor they need to consider: Iran tried to kill President Trump – twice. It’s likely one more reason the President is so insistent on denying Iran nuclear weapons. 

Here’s what happened, and why it may come back to haunt the Iranian regime:  

A Setup in New York 

In August 2024, the Justice Department charged a Pakistani national, Asif Raza Merchant, with attempting to hire hitmen to kill “a politician or U.S. government official” in New York. 

The indictment says Merchant lived in Iran for some time with his Iranian wife and children. While in the U.S., Justice Department officials said, Merchant carried out an Iran-directed plot to “retaliate against American public officials for the killing of Iranian General Soleimani”, the former head of the Iranian Quds Force who was killed in a U.S. military missile strike in 2020. 

The indictment doesn’t name then-candidate Trump explicitly, but unnamed law enforcement officials told the New York Times and AP that he was a likely target.  

Merchant’s plot never got off the ground. The “hitmen” he allegedly met with were actually undercover FBI agents, and he was promptly arrested and charged with attempted terrorism. Merchant’s case is still ongoing. 

Marching Orders from Tehran 

Just three days after the 2024 election, the Justice Department arrested two U.S. citizens and one Iranian for plotting to assassinate Donald Trump and other American civilians.  

The Justice Department described the mastermind, Farhad Shakeri, as an “IRGC asset,” referring to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps – Iran’s most powerful military and political institution.  

Shakeri told investigators that in October 2024, the IRGC directed him to kill Donald Trump.  

In the months leading up to that, Shakeri allegedly recruited two American men to find and kill an unnamed “U.S. citizen of Iranian origin” who has been “an outspoken critic of the Iranian regime.” The IRGC also instructed Shakeri to kill two Jewish Americans in New York City. 

The two American men accused of conspiring with Shakeri were found and arrested in New York, where they face charges for murder-for-hire and for money laundering. Their trials are ongoing. 

Farhad Shakeri is still at large, and U.S. officials believe he is back in Iran. 

Full Circle 

As Iran ramps up its nuclear program and Israel responds with force, President Trump isn’t operating in the abstract. He’s dealing with a regime that, according to the U.S. government, has already tried to kill him. Twice.