Trump threatens to destroy Iran as talks continue and sanctions tighten

Donald Trump warned Iran he would "decimate and destroy" the country if Tehran carried out an assassination attempt, sharpening a confrontation that now runs alongside active diplomacy and fresh sanctions. Trump said he had left instructions for the U.S. military to respond with overwhelming force if he were killed, adding that the retaliation would "literally bomb" Iran at levels it had never seen before and that "1,000 missiles are locked and loaded."

The warning came as the United States agreed to continue talks after Tehran asked to keep negotiations going, even though Trump said the June ceasefire between the two countries was over. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi traveled to Muscat, Oman, on Saturday for discussions on bilateral and regional issues, including the security of the Strait of Hormuz. The trip underscored that diplomatic channels remained open even as Trump escalated his language toward Tehran.

The Treasury Department added to the pressure on Friday with new Iran-related sanctions targeting Ali Ansari and 13 other individuals and entities. The department said the measures reached people operating in Iran's financial and petroleum sectors and networks tied to the Supreme Leader and his affiliates, after resumed Iranian attacks on oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz. Among the names tied to the broader pressure campaign is Mojtaba Khamenei, Iran's Supreme Leader, whose network has been a focus of U.S. sanctions.

The security concerns are not abstract. Israel shared intelligence with the United States that Iran had recently devised a new, specific plot to assassinate Trump. Trump told the New York Post that he had been on Iran's "kill list" for a long time and said, "Israel came up with nothing." He has repeatedly said Iran wants him dead and has described himself as the "number one" target, a claim that has gained fresh weight after two domestic assassination attempts during the 2024 campaign. The result is a rare collision of campaign grievance, intelligence warning, and presidential messaging that leaves sanctions, talks and threat response moving on the same track.