Advertisement

Iranian operative charged in plot to murder ex-Trump adviser John Bolton

Click to play video: 'Iranian operative charged in alleged plot to murder Bolton, Pompeo'
Iranian operative charged in alleged plot to murder Bolton, Pompeo
WATCH: Shahram Poursafi, a member of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard, has been charged in connection with an alleged assassination plot targetting two members of former U.S. president Donald Trump's inner circle, former national security advisor John Bolton, and former secretary of state Mike Pompeo. Jackson Proskow explains why the pair was targeted, and how much the plot was worth – Aug 10, 2022

An Iranian operative has been charged in a plot to murder former Trump administration national security adviser John Bolton in presumed retaliation for a U.S. airstrike that killed the country’s most powerful general, offering hundreds of thousands of dollars to “eliminate” him, the Justice Department said Wednesday.

Shahram Poursafi, identified by U.S. officials as a member of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, is currently wanted by the FBI on charges related to the murder-for-hire plot.

Prosecutors say the scheme started more than a year after Qassem Soleimani, the head of Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guard force and an architect of Tehran’s proxy wars in the Middle East, was killed in a targeted airstrike at Baghdad’s international airport in January 2020. After the strike, Bolton, who by then had left his White House post, tweeted, “Hope this is the first step to regime change in Tehran.”

Story continues below advertisement
Poursafi, 45, offered $250,000 to people in Maryland and the District of Columbia to carry out the killing, including providing a work address, according to an FBI affidavit unsealed in federal court in Washington.
Click to play video: 'Trump enablers will pay ‘severe political price,’ says ex-ambassador John Bolton'
Trump enablers will pay ‘severe political price,’ says ex-ambassador John Bolton

In a statement, Bolton thanked the FBI and Justice Department for their work in developing the case.

“While much cannot be said publicly right now, one point is indisputable: Iran’s rulers are liars, terrorists, and enemies of the United States,” he said.

Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen, the Justice Department’s top national security official, said it was “not the first time we have uncovered Iranian plots to exact revenge against individuals on U.S. soil and we will work tirelessly to expose and disrupt every one of these efforts.”

For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen.

Get breaking National news

For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen.
By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.

The unsealing of the complaint comes two days after negotiators seeking to revive the Iran nuclear accord in Vienna closed on a “final text” of an agreement, with parties now consulting in their capitals on whether to agree to it it.

The 2015 deal granted Iran sanctions relief in exchange for tight curbs on its atomic program. Since the U.S. withdrew from the agreement under President Donald Trump, Iran has sped up its nuclear enrichment program. Bolton has been among the most hawkish critics of the deal and efforts by the Biden administration to rejoin it.

Advertisement

Sponsored content

AdChoices