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'I'm number one on the kill list.' Trump says Iran is targeting him

USA TODAY · back to the audit

'I'm number one on the kill list.' Trump says Iran is targeting him. President Donald Trump said Iran is targeting him for assassination as peace negotiations falter, telling reporters "I'm number one on the kill list for Iran." The president also appeared to threaten Iran's new regime, suggesting they could suffer the same fate as previous leaders. "They had leaders, they're gone," Trump said July 8 during a news conference at the NATO summit in Turkey. "And they had another set of leaders, they're gone. Now they have another set of leaders, they may be gone. Who knows?" "And you know what? I may be gone too," Trump added. "Because I'm their number one target." The president did not provide any details about Iran's alleged plot to kill him. "To me, I think it's over. I don't want to deal with them," Trump said of the ceasefire, calling Iran's leaders "scum," "sick people" and "cuckoo." A federal jury convicted Iranian operative Asif Merchant in March of plotting to kill Trump in 2024 before the war.