Trump Says He Left Instructions to Bomb Iran If He Is Assassinated

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday he has left instructions for Iran to be bombed if he was ever assassinated by the regime, following the collapse of a temporary ceasefire agreement between the United States and Iran.

Earlier this week, Trump warned that he was a top target for Iran after renewed conflict between the United States and Iran led to an exchange of military strikes and an end to the temporary ceasefire agreement. Trump said the United States would bomb Iran at unprecedented levels if he was killed.

“I’ve been on their list for a long time. That’s what we’re dealing with,” the president told The New York Post on Friday. He added, “The only thing is, I’ve left instructions—if anything happens, to just literally bomb them at levels that they’ve never seen before.”

Trump discussed the threat presented against his life by the Iranian regime during a press conference at the NATO summit on Wednesday. He said he was “number one” on Iran’s “kill list.”

Trump’s comments came after the United States conducted precision military strikes against Iran and hit more than 80 targets on Tuesday and about 90 targets on Wednesday. The U.S. military said the strikes were launched in response to a “clear and dangerous violation” of the ceasefire agreement with Iran.

The U.S. military strikes were carried out after Iran attacked three commercial tankers in the Strait of Hormuz weeks after a memorandum of understanding was signed and the conflict between the United States and Iran was temporarily ended.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said Wednesday that it targeted U.S. military sites in Bandar Salman, Bahrain’s Fifth Naval District, and Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait as part of a joint missile and drone operation.

In a Friday post on Truth Social, Trump said Iran asked the United States to continue “talks” following the exchange of military strikes. He said that while the United States has agreed to continue negotiating, it has told Iran “in no uncertain terms, that the Cease Fire is OVER!”

History of Threats

Trump departed from the NATO summit in Turkey on Wednesday on the old Air Force One aircraft after arriving in the new Air Force One, a $400 million Boeing 747-8 luxury aircraft gifted by the Qatari government. The White House said Thursday that the transportation swap was a “distraction and misdirection” intended to address threats against Trump.

“As the President has said recently, there are many enemies of America who have their sights on him, and we use every tool at our disposal—including distraction and misdirection—to address those threats,” said White House communications director Steven Cheung.

On Friday, Trump denied reports that Israel allegedly shared intelligence with the United States regarding a recent Iranian plot against him. “Israel came up with nothing,” Trump said. However, he reiterated that he is “No. 1” on Iran’s list of targets.

In February, Trump said he had given instructions to his advisers to be carried out if he was assassinated by Iran.

“If they did that, they would be obliterated,” Trump said. “I’ve left instructions. If they do it, they get obliterated. There won’t be anything left.”

Following Trump’s statement in February, an Iranian foreign ministry spokesman said claims that Iran was planning to kill U.S. officials were “fabrications by warmongers.”

U.S. officials previously confirmed they have been tracking threats by Iran against Trump and former administration officials for several years. Iranian officials threatened Trump during his first administration in 2020, after he ordered an airstrike that killed Iranian Gen. Qasem Soleimani.

In November 2024, the Department of Justice said that Farhad Shakeri, a 51-year-old Iranian national, had been directed by Iranian officials to conduct surveillance and plot the assassination of Trump just prior to the presidential election.