Details of Iran's Attempt to Assassinate Trump in a New Book; 'The Threats Were Serious'

According to Axios, Iran's threats to assassinate Donald Trump during last year's U.S. presidential campaign were much more serious than reflected in the public sphere, and Mr. Trump's team was warned about Iran's attempts to down his aircraft. These details are included in a book set to be published next month by Alex Eisenstadt, a writer for Axios. On Sunday, February 10, Eisenstadt published excerpts from his book on Axios, stating that he was given extensive access to Donald Trump's inner circle during the campaign. Donald Trump was the target of two unsuccessful assassination attempts during last year's presidential campaign, once in Pennsylvania and the second time at his golf club in Florida. U.S. intelligence agencies confirmed several times last year that they considered Iran's threats against Donald Trump's life to be serious and regarded it as a national security priority. According to Axios, although it was said that Iran was not linked to the two failed assassination attempts, security concerns about Iran's plot were high, and at one point, Mr. Trump's team was forced to use a 'decoy flight.' Based on the book set to be published next month, security officials warned Donald Trump last year during the campaign that Iran had deployed operatives in the United States to gain access to surface-to-air missiles. The report states that Mr. Trump's team was concerned that Iran would target his private plane known as 'Trump Force One,' which is easily recognizable, and this concern intensified especially after the second assassination attempt. Following heightened concerns after the second attempt, Mr. Trump once flew on a plane belonging to Steve Witkoff, his friend and current envoy to the Middle East, while 'Trump Force One' flew without him, carrying only staff and assistants. The White House and former officials of Donald Trump's campaign have not yet reacted to this report. The book's author also referred to another security warning in September, stating that the U.S. Secret Service warned Mr. Trump's campaign that they had information suggesting someone might attempt to shoot at his vehicle while passing through Long Island, New York. The book also reports that Secret Service agents noticed a drone following his motorcade during Mr. Trump's trip to Pennsylvania; agents in one of the vehicles shot the drone down with an electromagnetic weapon. Last week, Donald Trump stated at the White House that he had given instructions to his advisors that if Iran attempted to assassinate him, 'they should be obliterated and nothing should remain of them.' The Iranian mission to the United Nations has denied reports about Tehran's attempts to assassinate Donald Trump; however, senior officials of the Islamic Republic have repeatedly threatened to take revenge on Donald Trump for the killing of Qassem Soleimani, the former commander of the Quds Force of the Revolutionary Guards.