[IranAlert] Islamic Republic Clerical Establishment Doubles Down on Death Threat to President Trump

This is the NUFDI IranAlert—concise, timely analysis offering unique insights into breaking news and major developments inside Iran. Each short brief provides a fresh angle, highlighting trends, reactions, and overlooked internal dynamics shaping Iran and the Islamic Republic.

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Since June 29, senior members of the clerical establishment in Iran have called for the assassination of U.S. President Donald Trump. Shia Grand Ayatollahs Naser Makarem Shirazi and Hossein Noori Hamedani, on June 29, issued Fatwas (binding religious edicts) declaring President Trump “Mohareb” (an enemy of Allah), who should be punished with death. This message has consistently been echoed by senior clerics both before and after the Fatwas were issued, although earlier reactions were more subdued and went only as far as to condemn threats to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s life and warn of “severe consequences.” Such messages came from Grand Ayatollah Hossein Mazaheri Isfahani and Iraq-based Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani.

Declaring Murder of POTUS Permissible

On July 3, Tehran Seminary lecturers issued a statement declaring President Trump “responsible for spreading corruption on Earth” and “Mahdur ad-Damm,” or someone whose blood can be shed without repercussions or someone whose killing is permissible. The statement added, “The scoundrel Trump and his Zionist accomplice Netanyahu are considered ‘infidels waging war against Allah.’” They also warned that if the U.S. or Israel act upon threats to Khamenei’s life, “the region will turn into a blazing hell for American soldiers and diplomats. In fact, there will be no safe place for American citizens in the world.”

Death Threat to All Americans, Israelis

“Every able Muslim, anywhere in the world, should harm Americans and Zionists, and by doing so, is defending the principles of Islam. This should be [every Muslim’s] objective and obligatory duty. According to the command of the Quran, Paradise will be their reward,” Ayatollah Mohsen Araki declared in an interview with IRGC-controlled Tasnim News Agency. Araki is a member of the Assembly of Experts as well as the Expediency Discernment Council, key power centers within the Islamic Republic. Voicing support for the earlier Fatwas, he offered a harsher interpretation of them. He declared Israel “Kafir Harbi” (an infidel deserving of war). Arakai argued that the designation means that “there is no religious prohibition on harming life or property” of the state of Israel or its citizens, and “war should be waged against them with full force.” He argued, “The recent Fatwas are directed at all Muslims and declare the U.S. government and president as Kafir Harbi,” or infidels deserving of war.  “Therefore, his (Trump’s) property and life are permissible for taking, and the lives of those who are dependent on the American government are permissible for taking,” he added. Ayatollah Araki noted, “The same ruling applies to all those who support Trump, or support Trump’s military, or have supported and continue to support Trump's war decisions.” He also said, “Regimes such as the British, French, and German regimes that officially and openly support Trump and Netanyahu are also Kafir Harbi.”

Others

Ayatollah Alireza Arafi, a member of the Guardian Council and also the Assembly of Experts, and head of Iran’s Shia seminaries, welcomed the two Fatwas and said, “We warn the enemies against continuing their arrogance and declare the obligation of all Muslims and believers to abide by divine decrees as obligatory and necessary.” Iraq-based Ayatollah Ali-Akbar Hosseini Haeri said, “Any attack on the Supreme Leader is an attack on the Islamic Ummah… Therefore, we warn America and the Zionist regime that the consequences of this aggressive and unwise path will be very severe… The Islamic Ummah will never allow its religious and political authority to be attacked. Whoever wants to harm the Supreme Leader, the Islamic Ummah's response to him will be crushing and regrettable.” Ayatollah Abbas Ka'bi Nasab, a senior member of the Assembly of Experts, said, “Insulting the Supreme Leader is tantamount to insulting the 12th Shia Imam and is an example of waging war against Allah.” A senior cleric and one of the Supreme Leader’s favorite orators, Alireza Panahian, declared, “When someone is declared Mohareb, every Muslim, anywhere in the world, must risk their lives and kill them. The cursed Trump has been declared Mohareb.” The Center for Elites of the Supreme Council of Shia Seminarians in Iran issued a statement saying its members are prepared to “wear shrouds,” meaning they are prepared for death, and to carry out the Fatwas. Hojjatoleslam Mojtaba Fazel, head of the Women’s Seminary, said that, in line with the Fatwas and the text of Quran, “The punishment of those who wage war against Allah and His Messenger, spread corruption on the Earth, and threaten people with weapons, is that they be killed, or be hanged, or be crucified, or have four fingers on their right hand and four fingers on their left foot cut off on opposite sides, or be exiled from their land.” Hojjatoleslam Amin Asadpour, a lecturer at Qom Seminary, said that as per the Fatwas, “All Resistance cells in Western countries are charged to carry out the decree and [kill] Netanyahu and Trump.”