Trump, Iran trade ominous threats; both warn of destruction if leader is touched

Amid escalating geopolitical tensions, the United States and Iran have exchanged ominous threats, further deepening the hostility between the two countries.

Tensions between Washington and Tehran have remained high since Iranian authorities launched a violent crackdown on protests that erupted on December 28 over the country’s deteriorating economy.

Trump warns Iran

On Tuesday (January 20), US President Donald Trump warned that the United States would “wipe out” Iran if it attempted to assassinate him.

“I have very firm instructions — anything happens, they're going to wipe them off the face of this earth,” Trump said in an interview on NewsNation's “Katie Pavlich Tonight”.

Also Read: Trump's world: Are global leaders sleepwalking into World War I-like crisis?

The comments come against the backdrop of growing unrest in Iran and sharp exchanges between Washington and Tehran over the country’s leadership and handling of mass protests.

Trump had previously said he's given his advisors instructions to obliterate Iran if the country is behind an assassination attempt on him.

Iran hits back

This came as Iran warned Trump not to take any action against the country's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, days after the US president called for an end to Khamenei's nearly 40-year reign.

“Trump knows that if any hand of aggression is extended towards our leader, we not only cut that hand but also we will set fire to their world,” General Abolfazl Shekarchi, a spokesperson for Iran's armed forces, said.

The exchange came after Trump described Khamenei in an interview with Politico on Saturday (January 17) as “a sick man who should run his country properly and stop killing people,” adding that “it's time to look for new leadership in Iran.”

Red lines for Tehran

Trump has drawn two red lines for the Islamic Republic, the killing of peaceful protesters and Tehran conducting mass executions in the wake of the demonstrations.

Also Read: After Khamenei calls him a ‘criminal’, Trump calls for end to his reign in Iran

The USS Abraham Lincoln, which had been in the South China Sea in recent days, had passed through the Strait of Malacca, a key waterway connecting the South China Sea and Indian Ocean, by Tuesday, ship-tracking data showed.

A US Navy official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the aircraft carrier and three accompanying destroyers were heading west, news agency AP reported.

While naval and other defense officials reportedly stopped short of saying the carrier strike group was headed to the Middle East, its current heading and location in the Indian Ocean means its only days away from moving into the region.

Mounting death toll

The death toll from the protests has reached at least 4,519 people, the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency said on Tuesday.

Khamenei said on Saturday (January 17) that the protests had left “several thousand” people dead and blamed the United States. It was the first indication from an Iranian leader of the extent of the casualties.

Also Read: Iran protest death toll reaches 5,000 as unrest deepens, says official

More than 26,300 people have been arrested, according to the Human Rights Activists News Agency.

Iran's national police chief Gen. Ahmad Reza Radan has said those turning themselves in would receive more lenient treatment than those who don't.

“Those who were deceived by foreign intelligence services, and became their soldiers in practice, have a chance to turn themselves in,” Radan said in an interview carried by Iran's state television on Monday (January 19).

(With agency inputs)