Asif Raza Merchant, a Pakistani man accused of plotting to assassinate American political figures, including Donald Trump, told a court that he was pressured by Iran’s military organisation, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, to take part in the alleged murder-for-hire scheme. Merchant, 47, was charged in September 2024 with attempting to hire a hitman to assassinate unidentified U.S. politicians. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges. During testimony in court, Merchant said he had been forced into the plan because members of the Revolutionary Guards threatened his family living in Tehran. “My family was under threat, and I had to do this,” Merchant told the court through an Urdu interpreter, according to reporting by The Washington Post. “I was not wanting to do this so ...