Altered image misrepresents Trump post about Iran | Fact check

The claim: Image shows Trump post urging retaliation against Israel if he's assassinated

An Oct. 13 Instagram post (direct link, archive link) shows a Truth Social post from former President Donald Trump that includes a photo of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

"If they do 'assassinate President Trump,' which is always a possibility, I hope that America obliterates Israel, wipes it off the face of the Earth – If that does not happen, American Leaders will be considered 'gutless' cowards!" the Truth Social post reads.

The Instagram post was liked more than 700 times in four days.

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Our rating: Altered

The image was edited to change the country Trump referenced in his post. Trump said the U.S. should attack Iran, not Israel, if Iran assassinates him.

Screenshot of Trump post includes indicators of manipulation

The image in the Instagram post is based on a post shared by Trump on Truth Social on July 25. Trump's post contains a five-second video from Netanyahu's address to a joint meeting of Congress a day earlier, when the Israeli leader mentioned reports about Iran threatening to assassinate Trump.

Trump's original post makes it clear he urged retaliation against Iran, not Israel, should Iran carry out a successful attempt on his life. The image in the Instagram post was edited to change the word "Iran" to "Israel."

Trump's unaltered post reads: "If they do 'assassinate President Trump,' which is always a possibility, I hope that America obliterates Iran, wipes it off the face of the Earth – If that does not happen, American Leaders will be considered 'gutless' cowards!"

The image in the Instagram post also includes clear signs of digital manipulation. The word "Israel" is set in a smaller font size and is a brighter white than other text in the post.

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The Instagram post also doesn't include the playable clip of Netanyahu's remarks included in Trump's original post, omitting key information about the source of the threat Trump commented on.

The U.S. has long been monitoring threats by Iran to "seek revenge" against Trump and former members of his administration for the 2020 killing of Iranian Gen. Qasem Soleimani in a U.S. airstrike in Iraq, Sean Savett, a spokesperson for the National Security Council, previously told USA TODAY. Iran has denied such threats.

Trump survived an assassination attempt at a campaign rally on July 13 in Butler, Pennsylvania. The Secret Service thwarted an alleged second attempt on Trump's life on Sept. 15 at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida. Federal law enforcement agencies have not announced links to Iran in either attempt.

USA TODAY reached out to the Instagram user who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

PolitiFact also debunked the claim.

Our fact-check sources:

• Donald Trump, July 25, Truth Social post

• C-SPAN (YouTube), July 24, Israeli Prime Minister Address to Joint Meeting of Congress

• USA TODAY, July 17, Iran denies Trump assassination plot claim; US lawmakers slam Secret Service response

• The Associated Press, July 16, Iran threat prompted more security at Trump rally as officials warn of potential for copycat attacks

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump post edited to target Israel instead of Iran | Fact check