Fact Check: Did Trump threaten Mojtaba Khamenei with death in social media post?
WASHINGTON, DC: With Mojtaba Khamenei being appointed the new Supreme Leader of Iran following the death of his father, Ayatollah Khamenei, a rumor began circulating on social media platforms claiming that President Donald Trump had threatened the new Khamenei with death in his latest social media post. Let us fact-check the claim.
Claim: Donald Trump threatens Mojtaba Khamenei
In the purported post by Trump, the president appears to threaten the new supreme leader of the Islamic Republic with death.
The rumor circulated in the form of a screenshot showing a post by Trump on his official Truth Social handle, which states, “Mojtaba Khamenei, are you ready to meet your father?”
The screenshot spread on various social media platforms such as X, Facebook, and Threads, garnering hundreds of thousands of views, with many sharing it as an authentic post by the president.
Fact Check: Donald Trump never made such a post
However, Trump never made such a post, and the screenshot is fake. A search on the official Truth Social handle of the POTUS yielded no results, proving that no such post exists.
A fact check by Grok also confirmed this, stating, “No, this isn't real—it's a fake meme screenshot. Trump hasn't posted that on X (or anywhere).”
“In recent Axios/Politico interviews, he called Mojtaba Khamenei a ‘lightweight' and 'unacceptable' as successor, saying he wants to be involved in picking Iran's next leader for 'harmony and peace.’ But no direct tweet like this.”
If the claim were true, it would have been widely covered by prominent news media outlets.
Donald Trump reacts to Mojtaba Khamenei being named Iran's Supreme Leader
The screenshot surfaced as Iran rebuffed Trump’s bid to shape its leadership and moved ahead with choosing Mojtaba Khamenei as the Supreme Leader amid ongoing regional conflict.
The Assembly of Experts, a group of 88 religious leaders, confirmed the appointment by a large majority vote.
In response to the appointment, Trump reacted cautiously, saying he is 'not happy.'
Speaking to ABC News, Trump said, “He’s going to have to get approval from us…If he doesn’t get approval from us, he’s not going to last long. We want to make sure that we don’t have to go back every 10 years, when you don’t have a president like me that’s not going to do it.”
He added, “I don’t want people to have to go back in five years and have to do the same thing again, or worse, let them have a nuclear weapon.”
When asked if he would be willing to approve someone with ties to the old regime, Trump replied, “I would, to choose a good leader, I would, yeah, I would. Numerous people could qualify.”
