"Iran May Be Involved in Passenger Plane Incident," Trump Hints at Invoking Insurrection Act

[Anchor]

U.S. President Donald Trump has stated that an attempted terrorist attack involving a crashed passenger plane may be linked to Iran. With the midterm elections just a month away, he even hinted at the possibility of declaring a state of emergency that could mobilize the military.

Our Washington correspondent, Jeon Byeong-nam, has the details.

[Reporter]

U.S. President Donald Trump claimed that Iran may have been involved in the attempted crash of a flydubai passenger plane.

He emphasized that if Iran's involvement is confirmed, strong retaliatory measures will be taken.

[Donald Trump / U.S. President: Based on what I'm hearing, the answer is yes. But we are continuing to look into that matter right now. They (Iran) are going to be hit very hard.]

He blamed the media for concerns about potential defeat in the midterm elections due to a prolonged conflict with Iran and other factors.

[Donald Trump / U.S. President: The media is not treating us (the administration) fairly. It has been reported that we have achieved the highest level of economic figures of any president in U.S. history, but people don't know because the media doesn't report it.]

Earlier yesterday (October 1), President Trump announced South Korea's investment projects in the U.S., including the Alaska LNG project which has not yet been finalized. Some U.S. media outlets evaluated that the announcement was heavily aimed at the midterm elections and that the Alaska LNG project had not been agreed upon with South Korea.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of the Treasury ramped up pressure on Iran by imposing new sanctions targeting its automotive and railway industries.

The Treasury explained that Iran's automotive sector is deeply intertwined with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps patronage network, and that Iran is continuing oil transportation and trade via railways instead of the blockaded Strait of Hormuz, making this an essential measure to cut off funding.

He also requested Europe to release strategic petroleum reserves to stabilize diesel prices.

Despite these efforts, forecasts of a midterm election defeat are growing stronger. In an interview with Time magazine released on October 1 local time, President Trump hinted at the possibility of declaring a state of emergency through the Insurrection Act ahead of the midterm elections, stating that "many people think it's necessary."

The U.S. Insurrection Act allows for the deployment of the military in domestic law enforcement.

This is interpreted as leaving open the possibility of deploying military troops under the pretext of preventing election fraud.

(Photo: Yonhap News / Video coverage: Oh Jung-shik, Video editing: Kim Jin-won, Design: Shim Soo-hyun)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.