Iranian clerics have called for the assassination of U.S. President Donald Trump and the execution of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, branding them "criminals" and "wicked" respectively. A statement issued by members of the Assembly of Experts declared that the killing of both leaders is a "religious duty" that "must not be neglected under any circumstances."
The clerics stated, "It is obligatory upon any duty-bound person who gains access to these criminals to send them to hell." This call for assassination comes as revenge for the death of Ali Khamenei, who was killed on the first day of the war. The clerics' headquarters in Tehran and Qom were bombed to prevent the naming of a successor, although Khamenei's son Mojtaba was appointed.
The Assembly of Experts, constitutionally tasked with choosing and supervising Iran's supreme leader, urged supporters of the Islamic Republic to continue mass protests. They added that they have a duty to their country and religion to assassinate "the criminal American president" and "the wicked prime minister of the Zionist regime."
This development occurs despite a peace deal signed by Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, aiming to end the war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz. However, negotiations regarding Iran's nuclear program, a primary cause for Trump's military campaign in February, are ongoing for an additional 60-day period.
Multiple attacks in the Persian Gulf have highlighted the danger of the conflict escalating, even after an interim deal was reached to negotiate a final accord. On Saturday, U.S. forces launched overnight strikes in response to an Iranian drone attack on a container ship in the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, continuing a series of attacks that have disrupted the war's uneasy ceasefire.
The clerics expressed concern that Trump is using the current period to rearm, stating, "The likelihood of a renewed attack after will be very high – the matters raised in the memorandum of understanding must be resolved within the stipulated 30-day and 60-day deadlines." A majority of 63 out of 88 members of the Assembly of Experts have signed the statement.
