New York [US], March 7 (HBTV): Asif Merchant, a Pakistani national accused of plotting with Iranian authorities to assassinate US President Donald Trump, has been convicted by a court in Brooklyn, the New York Times reported. Merchant was found guilty of attempted terrorism and murder for hire by the Federal District Court.
Earlier, Merchant testified that Iranian intelligence operatives coerced him into participating in a plot targeting Donald Trump and Joe Biden, the New York Post reported. Merchant gave his account in court on Wednesday, claiming he was pressured into the scheme to protect his relatives.
During his testimony in the Brooklyn federal court, he stated that he felt compelled to act. 'I had no other options. My family was threatened,' Merchant told the jury. The accused, a former banker, allegedly paid USD 5,000 to two undercover FBI agents who were posing as assassins.
According to the New York Post, Merchant said that an Iranian handler instructed him in April 2024 to travel to the United States to 'maybe have somebody murdered'. While the handler did not initially specify a single target, Merchant testified that three names were later provided.
'He did not tell me exactly who it is, but he named three people to me: Donald Trump, Joe Biden and Nikki Haley,' he said.
At the time, Trump and Biden were the frontrunners in the 2024 presidential race. Merchant also claimed he had been involved in helping the Iranian regime evade sanctions through money laundering. The New York Post reported that he identified his handler as Mehrdad Yousef, a member of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
The trial and judgement come as the United States and Israel continue military strikes on Iran, with Tehran responding with counter-attacks targeting US assets in the region.
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump on Friday (US local time) praised the military operations being undertaken by the United States in Iran and claimed that the country had lost much of its military capability along with several of its leaders. He made the remarks while speaking during a roundtable on collegiate sports at the White House.
Trump told the press, 'We're doing very well, by the way, in Iran. Somebody said, how would you score it from zero to 10? I said I'd give it a 12 to a 15. Their army is gone. Their Navy is gone. Their communications are gone. Their leaders are gone. Two sets of their leaders are gone. They're down to their third set. Their air forces wiped out entirely. Think of it. They have 32 ships. All 32 are at the bottom of the ocean.'
Saturday marks the seventh day of the conflict in West Asia, and with neither side relenting, the confrontation shows no immediate signs of easing.
(ANI)