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Secret service beefed up security after intel that Iran was plotting to assassinate Trump – CNN

Since the killing of General Soleimani, commander of IRGC, in 2020, Iran has plotted assassinations of Trump administration officials.

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

CNN reported on Tuesday that the U.S. Secret Service has tightened security around former president Donald Trump after receiving intel that he was a target of an assassination plot by Iran.

This news raises questions about the security lapses that led to the assassination attempt carried out by Thomas Matthew Crooks against Trump on Saturday.

There is no indication of any connection between the Iranian plot and Crooks’ attempt to kill the former President.

“Secret Service learned of the increased threat from this threat stream,” a security official told CNN.

The Secret Service officials said the Trump campaign was aware of the heightened threat and warned them not to hold outdoor rallies where it was harder to vet attendees.

However, the Trump campaign would not comment on the matter, “We do not comment on President Trump’s security detail. All questions should be directed to The United States Secret Service,” the campaign said in a statement.

During a certain period, the campaign stopped holding spontaneous off-the-record events at which the Secret Service could not thoroughly check guests beforehand.

The Permanent Mission of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the United Nations denied a plot to assassinate Trump.

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“These accusations are unsubstantiated and malicious. From the perspective of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Trump is a criminal who must be prosecuted and punished in a court of law for ordering the assassination of General Soleimani. Iran has chosen the legal path to bring him to justice,” a spokesperson told CNN.

Since the killing of General Soleimani, commander of the Iranian military’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), in January 2020 by the US, there have been reports of Iranian assassination plots against officials in the Trump administration.

In 2022, the Justice Department imposed criminal charges against the IRGC terror group for plotting to assassinate John Bolton, Trump’s national security advisor.

The Iranians had also planned to assassinate Trump’s former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.