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In a Persian-language television interview, former Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki applauded the issuance of a fatwa advocating for the assassination of U.S. President Donald Trump. Meanwhile, his daughter resides in New York City, where her husband, an Iranian diplomat, is stationed at Iran’s permanent mission to the United Nations, Fox News Digital has confirmed.
Mottaki referred to the religious decree calling for the deaths of President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a “brave and significant act.” He emphasized this point during the interview, describing the decree as a bold statement.
Having served as Iran’s foreign minister from 2005 to 2010 under President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Mottaki remains influential in Iran’s political circles. He stated that Iran’s Supreme Leader had labeled Trump a criminal and suggested that Iran’s judiciary should take action, as per the video reviewed by Fox News Digital.
Further, Mottaki reiterated his stance by praising the religious ruling that targets both Trump and Netanyahu, emphasizing its importance and courage.
In an earlier appearance, Iran’s former Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki addressed the media during a news conference in Tbilisi on November 3, 2010.
Mottaki’s daughter, Zahra Assadi Nazari, is married to Nasser Assadi Nazari, who is listed as a third counselor at Iran’s mission to the United Nations in New York.
The situation echoes previous controversies involving relatives of senior Iranian officials living in the United States.Â
In January, Emory University dismissed Fatemeh Ardeshir-Larijani, the daughter of Iranian official Ali Larijani, from a teaching position after protests over her employment at the university’s medical school.
On Sunday, Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations, Saeid Iravani, sparred with U.S. envoy Mike Waltz during a Security Council session, telling the American ambassador to “be polite,” a remark that drew a sharp rebuke.
Former Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki speaks during Tehran’s Friday prayers May 20, 2011. (Morteza Nikoubazl/Reuters)
“I have one word only: I advise the representative of the United States to be polite,” Iravani said during the meeting.
Moments later, Waltz responded: “Frankly, I’m not going to dignify this with another response, especially as this representative sits here in this body representing a regime that has killed tens of thousands of its own people and imprisoned many more simply for wanting freedom from your tyranny.”
Fox News Digital contacted Iran’s mission to the United Nations asking whether it could confirm the relationship. The mission declined to comment.
Iran’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Amir-Saeid Iravani attends a United Nations Security Council meeting, after the U.S. and Israel launched strikes on Iran, at U.N. headquarters in New York City, U.S. Feb. 28, 2026. (Heather Khalifa/Reuters)
Fox News Digital also requested comment from the U.S. Mission to the United Nations regarding Mottaki’s remarks and the broader implications of a former senior Iranian official appearing to endorse violence against the sitting U.S. president while his immediate family resides in New York. No response was received by the time of publication.
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