"Got Him Before He Got Me": Trump Says Khamenei Plotted His Killing In 2024

Two days after Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah was killed in Israel-US strikes, President Donald Trump alleged that Ali Khamenei tried to get him killed twice. Trump rejoiced that he got Khamenei first, reported ABC News.

Trump made the comment during a call with Jonathan Karl, Chief Washington Correspondent at ABC News on Sunday evening.

"President Trump told me this about the death of Ayatollah Khamenei: "I got him before he got me. They tried twice. Well I got him first." That's a reference to what US intelligence believes was a plot to kill Trump in 2024," Karl wrote in a post on X (formerly Twitter).

In another phone call this evening, President Trump told me this about the death of Ayatollah Khamenei:

"I got him before he got me. They tried twice. Well I got him first."

That's a reference to what US intelligence believes was a plot to kill Trump in 2024.

— Jonathan Karl (@jonkarl) March 2, 2026

Also Read | Khamenei Dead But Is Trump's Iran Problem Over? New US Challeges Explained

What Trump Said On Khamenei's Death

Calling Khamenei one of the most evil people in history, Trump announced Iran's Supreme leader's death on social media.

"This is not only Justice for the people of Iran, but for all Great Americans, and those people from many Countries throughout the World, that have been killed or mutilated by Khamenei and his gang of bloodthirsty THUGS,"  Trump claimed in a post on his social media platform, Truth Social.

"He was unable to avoid our Intelligence and Highly Sophisticated Tracking Systems and, working closely with Israel, there was not a thing he, or the other leaders that have been killed along with him, could do," Trump added.

Trump believes this is the "single greatest chance" for the Iranian people to take back their country. He has urged Iranians to rise up and topplpe the regime.

Also Read | Trump Was Asked Who Will Replace Iran's Khamenei. What He Said

2024 Assassination Attempts

In 2024, Trump faced two separate alleged assassination attempts. In July, Trump was shot in his ear during a Pennsylvania rally. Later, in September, a man was arrested for pointing a rifle at Trump who was golfing on his course in West Palm Beach.

Months later, Farhad Shakeri, an Afghan national who was deported from the US in 2008, was charged over an alleged plot by Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) to kill Donald Trump.

The Justice Department termed Farhad Shakeri as an "Iranian asset" who was tasked by the Iranian regime to plot Trump's assassination. Shakeri, 51, allegedly told law enforcement that he did not intend to propose a plan to kill Trump within the timeframe set by the IRGC, according to an official statement. Iran denied the charges.