(MENAFN) Amirali Hajizadeh, head of the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) aerospace force, announced on Friday that Tehran is still pursuing plans to assassinate former US President Donald Trump, his former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and other United States officials who were responsible for the assassination of Iran's top general, Qassem Soleimani in January 2020. Hajizadeh made this announcement while unveiling a new cruise missile, which he claims has a range of 1,650 kilometers.

The United States had launched a drone strike that killed Qassem Soleimani while he was visiting Iraq's capital, Baghdad. Then-President Donald Trump had claimed responsibility for the attack and cited Soleimani's alleged attacks on United States personnel across the region as justification for the strike. Tehran has repeatedly pledged to avenge the assassination of Soleimani and has threatened to kill Trump and other officials involved in the strike.

Interpol has repeatedly been asked by Iran to help catch Trump and nearly 50 other United States officials believed to be linked to the strike, but their requests have been rejected. Iran has also been pursuing legal action to bring the culprits to justice. It is unclear from Hajizadeh's comments whether Tehran seeks to eliminate all the Americans it had previously sought to arrest with the help of Interpol.

Hajizadeh's remarks are likely to further escalate tensions between Tehran and Washington. It remains to be seen whether the United States is going to respond with any retaliatory measures or whether Iran is going to continue to pursue its legal route to bring the culprits to justice.

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