By A high-ranking Iranian official has issued a blunt threat against former U.S. President Donald Trump, invoking the specter of a drone attack as tensions mount in the wake of a brief but intense war between Iran and Israel. The comments, delivered on Iranian state television and widely circulated online, reflect a growing chorus of hardline voices in Tehran calling for retribution over past U.S. actions—most notably Trump’s role in the 2020 killing of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani.
“Trump has done something so that he can no longer sunbathe in Mar-a-Lago,” declared Mohammad-Javad Larijani, a longtime advisor to Iran’s Supreme Leader. “As he lies there with his stomach to the sun, a small drone might hit him in the navel. It’s very simple.” Larijani’s remarks follow U.S. airstrikes on three Iranian nuclear facilities—strikes allegedly authorized after Trump publicly claimed to know the whereabouts of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei during the recent twelve-day conflict.
Larijani’s threat coincides with the rise of a shadowy online campaign calling itself the “Blood Pact,” which claims to have raised more than $40 million in bounty money for those who target enemies of Khamenei—specifically naming Trump. The group’s stated goal is to reach $100 million to fund what it calls “justice” against individuals who insult or threaten the Supreme Leader. While the authenticity of the fundraising figures remains unverified, and the identities behind the campaign are unknown, the platform’s rhetoric has prompted alarm among Western observers and Iranian moderates alike.
The state-linked Fars News Agency reported on the campaign approvingly, urging mass demonstrations outside Western embassies and calling for the application of moharebeh—a religious charge of “waging war against God” that carries the death penalty under Iranian law—against both Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The hardline Kayhan newspaper echoed the call in a fiery editorial, dismissing objections from within Iran’s own leadership.
President Masoud Pezeshkian, attempting to separate the Iranian state from the rhetoric, told U.S. commentator Tucker Carlson that “the fatwa of warfare has nothing to do with the Iranian government or the Supreme Leader.” But his remarks were promptly rebuked by Kayhan, which is overseen by a representative of Khamenei. “This is not an academic opinion. It is a clear religious ruling in defense of faith, sanctities and especially the guardianship of the jurist,” the paper wrote. The editorial warned that any future “fire-starter” would meet violent retribution, adding, “The Islamic Republic will drown Israel in blood.”
Fox News reporter Peter Doocy asked Trump about the threat on Wednesday and the president shrugged it off.
“Yeah, I guess it’s a threat. I’m not sure it’s a threat, actually, but perhaps it is,” Trump responded.
Doocy also asked Trump, “When was the last time you went sunbathing?” to which the president said, “It’s been a long time. Maybe I was around 7 or so. I’m not too big into it.”
WATCH: @realDonaldTrump shrugs off an alleged threat from Iran that he can no longer safely sunbathe in Mar-a-Lago anymore. The president's response? He hasn't sunbathed since he was "around 7 or so." pic.twitter.com/wrFCbVgntC
— Fox News (@FoxNews) July 9, 2025
The threats against Trump are not new. Since authorizing the targeted killing of Soleimani in Baghdad, the former president has faced multiple plots attributed to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The latest threats suggest Iran’s most hardline factions continue to view Trump—and by extension, Netanyahu—as enduring symbols of Western aggression and legitimate targets for retaliation.
The U.S. Department of Justice has revealed a foiled Iranian-backed assassination plot targeting Trump in 2024, allegedly orchestrated by Farjad Shakeri, an asset of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC). According to unsealed federal court documents, Shakeri was directed by a senior IRGC official to prioritize surveillance and ultimately carry out the assassination, with money reportedly “not an issue.” Then Attorney General Merrick Garland condemned the plot as a grave national security threat and part of Iran’s broader campaign against American officials.
[Read More: DOJ Opens Up Investigation Into Obama Key Adviser]
