New details published about Iran-backed plot to kill Trump, Biden

( NewsNation ) — President Joe Biden, former President Donald Trump and former U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley, who ran in this year’s Republican primary, were all targets of assassination plots backed by the Iranian government.

FBI files made public this week by Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley go into more detail about these attempted assassinations, done in retaliation for the United States killing Qassem Soleimani.

NewsNation previously reported on credible plots against former United Nations Ambassador John Bolton and ex-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo as well.

Documents Grassley published show that these plans to kill U.S. officials were not just theoretical. Iranian officials took concrete steps to carry these assassinations out, even going as far as hiring people and placing them in the United States.

Some of this information came out in interviews the FBI conducted with a Pakistani national with Iranian ties arrested in July in connection with a plot to kill U.S. officials. Asif Merchant, also known as Asif Raza Merchant, 46, was arrested in New York after allegedly talking to people whom he didn’t know were actually undercover American agents. Merchant laid out a specific assassination plan — and even went as far as to get $5,000 to pay purported hit men.

“This dangerous murder-for-hire plot exposed in today’s complaint allegedly was orchestrated by a Pakistani national with close ties to Iran and is straight out of the Iranian playbook,” FBI Director Christopher Wray said after Merchant’s arrest. “A foreign-directed plot to kill a public official, or any U.S. citizen, is a threat to our national security and will be met with the full might and resources of the FBI.”

NewsNation digital producer Steph Whiteside contributed to this report.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to NewsNation.