Bolton says Trump remains top Iranian assassination target

The move, which comes amid a broader effort to deepen ties with Persian Gulf Arab states, marks a break with long-standing international convention, prompting sharp rebuke from Iran, which shares the longest coastline along the body of water.

Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi called the reported decision politically motivated and historically inaccurate, saying, “The name Persian Gulf, like many geographical designations, is deeply rooted in human history.”

"Politically motivated attempts to alter the historically established name of the Persian Gulf are indicative of hostile intent toward Iran and its people, and are firmly condemned. Such biased actions are an affront to all Iranians, regardless of their background or place of residence,” Iran's top diplomat said on X.

Two US officials familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the announcement would be made while Trump visits Riyadh as part of a regional tour that includes Qatar and the United Arab Emirates—countries that have long pushed for the geographic name change.

“The president is expected to unveil what he calls a ‘historic reorientation’ of US nomenclature to better reflect regional alliances,” one of the officials said.

Trump himself teased a major announcement during a meeting at the White House on Tuesday. “It’ll be one of the most important announcements that have been made in many years about a certain subject, a very important subject,” he said.

Known globally as the Persian Gulf since at least the 16th century, the name of the inland sea has become a politically and culturally charged issue. Arab states often use “Arabian Gulf” in official documents and maps, while Iran considers the historical term a matter of national identity.

“The Persian Gulf is not just a name. It is part of who we are,” an Iranian diplomat in Tehran said on condition of anonymity. “Changing it under pressure from petrodollars will not erase thousands of years of history.”

In 2017, during Trump's first administration, his first reference to what he called the "Arabian Gulf" led to public backlash from Tehran.

The Iranian foreign minister at the time, Mohammad Javad Zarif, said: “Everyone knew Trump’s friendship was for sale to the highest bidder. We now know that his geography is, too.”

Iran’s then-president, Hassan Rouhani, also criticized the phrasing, saying Trump should “study geography.”

The US military has unilaterally used “Arabian Gulf” in communications for years, but the White House’s official adoption of the term would represent a new level of endorsement, likely increasing tensions with Tehran.

Under international maritime law, the designation of sea names is handled by the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO), which currently recognizes the body of water as the “Persian Gulf.” The United Nations and most world maps do the same.

While Trump can direct US federal agencies to use a different name, he cannot enforce the change globally. Congressional legislation would be required to make the shift permanent in US law, and a future administration could easily reverse it.

“Trump can rename it on White House letterhead, but that won’t change global consensus,” said Lisa Barry, a professor of international law at Georgetown University.

The renaming announcement is part of a broader push to align more closely with Persian Gulf Arab monarchies as Trump seeks increased investment from the region and backing for his policies on Iran and Israel.

The announcement also follows a controversial decision earlier this year to rename the Gulf of Mexico as the “Gulf of America” in US government usage—a move that led to a legal battle with the Associated Press.

A federal judge ultimately ruled that the AP could not be denied access to government events for refusing to adopt the administration’s preferred terminology, citing First Amendment protections.

The inland sea in question spans about 251,000 square kilometers (97,000 square miles) and borders eight nations: Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, the UAE, and Oman. Iran alone accounts for more than 1,600 kilometers (1,000 miles) of its coastline.

Trump is scheduled to travel to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE from May 13 to 16. The announcement is expected to be made during a keynote speech in Riyadh, though officials said the precise timing remains fluid.

Security Minister Dan Jarvis told Parliament on Tuesday that the arrests marked "the first Iranian nationals arrested under the National Security Act.”

He said the Iranian state—including the IRGC and the Ministry of Intelligence and Security—had previously been placed on the enhanced tier of the foreign influence registration scheme.

“Anyone in the UK who works for the Iranian state must declare it or they will be committing a serious criminal offence,” he added.

The arrests, made on May 4 in London, Rochdale, Swindon, Manchester and Stockport, involved five men held under the Terrorism Act 2006 and three more under the National Security Act. Four remain in custody. Authorities believe the group was only hours away from attacking a specific location.

The Telegraph reported that at least one of the suspects is closely tied to the Islamic Republic’s leadership and comes from a prominent business family.

Jarvis said MI5 and police have responded to 20 Iran-backed plots since January 2022.

Liberal Democrat MP Lisa Smart criticized the government, saying, “Over recent years Members have been called to this Chamber to discuss plots to commit acts of terror on Britain’s streets at the hands of the Iranian regime—but consecutive Governments are yet to proscribe the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization.”

“If now is not the time for proscription, when should the House expect a further update?” she asked.

Labor’s Matt Vickers recalled the Home Secretary’s previous commitment to impose “appropriately targeted proscription-style restrictions” on state-linked entities such as the IRGC.

Labor and Co-operative MP Alex Sobel protested that he “asked many times for proscription of the IRGC, as it is certainly one of the bodies in Iran that is responsible for transnational repression,” while Labor MP Jon Pearce raised concerns that UK-based charities may be used to fund terrorism.

According to the government, a review of legal options by Jonathan Hall, an independent barrister, has been completed and will be published soon. Ministers have said they will not hesitate to act based on the findings.

Meanwhile, exiled Iranian prince Reza Pahlavi called the arrests further proof of what he calls Tehran’s global threat. “The arrest of Islamic Republic agents in the UK, on the brink of another terror attack, reinforces the need to proscribe the IRGC as a terrorist organization,” he wrote on X.

“This regime has proven, once again, that it will not change its behavior. It continues to spread terror not only in the Middle East but to target innocent civilians across Europe and the United States.”

US President Donald Trump made the shock announcement in the White House on Tuesday that he was calling off a bombing campaign on Yemen's Houthis after the Iran-backed group "capitulated" by agreeing to halt attacks on shipping.

Oman said on Tuesday it was mediating a Houthi-US ceasefire deal, but adding to the fog of war, Mohammed al-Bukhaiti was quoted by Bloomberg as saying after Trump's announcement that it would continue its campaign until Israel halts attacks on Gaza.

Tehran and Washington have signaled continued commitment to nuclear negotiations but stepped-up combat between the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen and Israel had cast a shadow over the diplomatic efforts.

The Houthis pierced Israel's air defenses to land a ballistic missile near Israel's main airport on Saturday and Israeli fighter jets attacked Yemen's main port on Monday and airport on Tuesday along with power plants and a factory.

"Our choice of when to respond, how to respond, and on what targets to respond - this is a consideration we make every time," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday.

"And this also concerns the patron of the Houthis - Iran, without whose approval and their long-term support, the Houthis cannot carry out their criminal missile attack."

The uptick in violence suggests the religious militia and perhaps its backers in Tehran are not deterred despite the painful blows Israel has meted out to Iran and its armed affiliates in over a year of regional fighting.

Before the Ben Gurion airport attack, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also warned of unspecified payback for Tehran, citing its continued support for the Houthis despite an explicit warning from President Trump that they desist support or face attack.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has long rejected the notion that groups like the Houthis act at Iran’s direction. “The Islamic Republic does not have proxies. Yemen is fighting because of its faith,” he said in a December 2024 speech.

In a letter to the United Nations on Monday, Iran's UN ambassador Saeid Iravani rejected allegations of complicity in the Houthi attack on the airport, warning that “the United States and the Israeli regime will bear full and unequivocal responsibility for all consequences” arising from any aggression on the Islamic Republic.

The future of Iran-US indirect talks currently hangs in the balance after a fourth round is due to be held in Oman over the weekend after they were delayed by a week for unclear reasons.

Hardline Iranian media and officials, including the IRGC-linked Javan newspaper, praise the Houthis for their anti-Israeli and anti-American positions. “Ansarullah's missiles on Ben Gurion shook Israel’s psychological security,” Ali Shamkhani, a Khamenei advisor, wrote Tuesday on X.

“The attack from Sanaa was a strategic blow to the delusion of the Resistance’s collapse — a front that now holds the initiative, with an ever-growing presence from Lebanon and Gaza to Iraq and Sanaa,” he wrote.

Yet, the strike's timing has led some commentators to posit that that factions within Iran may be actively undermining diplomatic progress.

Iranian-Canadian analyst Shahir Shahidsaless raised the question directly: “Is the hardline faction of the Iranian government once again trying to sabotage and disrupt the talks?” he posted on X.

Even some conservatives have acknowledged that the timing of the strike could be damaging to the US talks. Military analyst Behzad Atabaki, writing on a Telegram channel, argued that Iran should have at least called for a pause in Houthi attacks during the negotiation period. “Maybe it’s too late, maybe not,” he said.

The explosion struck Bandar Abbas, one of Iran’s most vital trade arteries. It cloaked the city in toxic fumes. Schools and government offices were shut, residents were told to stay home and wear masks. Yet officials tried to downplay the severity.

Soon speculations and gossip rivered, as is the case usually, to fill the vacuum left by the state’s evasion.

“You won’t get shock waves 5km away if the blasted containers had sugar or wheat,” my friend Navid, an English instructor, told me shortly after the news came in.

“It has to be explosives,” he posited, “weapons hidden among civilian cargo to protect it from attacks. They don’t care about the human cost.”

Most casualties were port workers, ensuring the flow of goods in and out of the country. As the numbers rose, public fury deepened.

Unofficial accounts pointed to sodium perchlorate and other compounds imported from China for Iran’s missile program. Authorities denied any such link, and one state news report quoting customs officials suggesting improper storage practices was quietly deleted hours later.

The belief that such cargo may have been stored without workers’ knowledge, possibly to shield it from foreign attack, has inflamed a population fed up with incompetence and injustice.

“Either it’s criminal negligence or a deliberate act. And I’m not sure which is worse,” says Amin, who works for a logistics company. “Some say it was Israel, though they denied it instead of their customary silence. But even if it was an Israeli operation, I’d still blame those who hid military cargo among commercial goods.”

Amin is 47, the same age as the Islamic Republic, he reminds me. “My whole life is gone, wasted, under this brutish bunch.”

The frustration, the rage, in Amin’s voice is perhaps the most common emotion I see around me these days. And those in power appear mostly indifferent or oblivious. And I’m not sure which is worse–to borrow Amin’s words.

“Did you see the transport minister on TV,” my doctor’s secretary, jumps at me before I can barely say hello. “Oh my God, she sounded like a game show host, smiling that ‘all is fine’ while the port was in flames and people were going crazy not knowing what had happened to their loved ones.”

She is of the talkative type I would ignore if I weren't researching for a story.

“And then that half-wit (president) Pezeshkian, oh my God, he pays a visit to bed-bound, shell-shocked victims and jokes about walking out of the hospital. At least pretend you care,” she added.

Pezeshkian and his transport minister Farzaneh Sadeq are under fire. The latter has a motion of impeachment waiting for her in the parliament. She likely knew nothing about the containers. As the only female minister, she’s the perfect scapegoat, the “shortest wall” to knock down as we say in Persian.

The only ones held ‘accountable’ here are those trying to shed light on a tragedy. Reporters on the scene have been threatened and silenced. Papers in Tehran have been gently reminded to tow the official line.

“Our editors have received the infamous call,” says Elham, a journalist at a moderate daily. “And they relay the message to us: don’t engage in ‘illegal’ activity. God knows what that even means. We just want to report what we find out.”

After ten days, the port flames are gone. But the fire burning in us—the one lit by the Islamic Republic’s contempt for truth and life—shows no sign of dying down.

Speaking to the Tasnim news agency on the sidelines of the Assembly's meeting, Araghchi said that members of the influential clerical body expressed their appreciation for the Foreign Ministry's effort.

He added that the ministry's approach continues "with dignity within the framework of national consensus."

Araghchi detailed the topics covered in his briefing, which included responses to questions and concerns from Assembly members regarding various foreign policy areas.

These included indirect talks with the US, the rationale behind the foreign ministry's approach, relations with regional organizations like the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and BRICS, US policies of pressure and threats, and future prospects, according to Tasnim.