Iran’s Rouhani: Trump White House afflicted by ‘mental retardation’

Iran’s president attacked the White House over new sanctions.

By World Israel News Staff and AP

Iran’s president mocked President Donald Trump on Tuesday, going so far as to say that the White House is “afflicted by mental retardation.”

The comments by Hassan Rouhani come a day after the Trump administration sanctioned Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and his associates.

Rouhani said the decision meant the “certain failure” of the White House’s efforts. He also criticized U.S. officials for wanting to sanction Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif. “You sanction the foreign minister simultaneously with a request for talks?” he said.

Iran’s president says the new U.S. sanctions targeting the Islamic Republic’s supreme leader and others are “outrageous and idiotic.”

On Monday, Trump signed an executive order targeting Iran’s Supreme Leader, his office and associates. “The assets of Ayatollah Khamenei and his office will not be spared from the sanctions,” Trump said.

“The supreme leader of Iran is the one who ultimately is responsible for the hostile conduct of the regime,” Trump said while signing the executive order. “He’s respected within his country. His office oversees the regime’s most brutal instruments, including the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.”

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said the new sanctions, including against Iran’s military leaders, “will lock up literally billions of dollars more of assets.”

He said the U.S. would sanction Iran’s foreign minister later in the week.