UPDATE***
According to the Washington Free Beacon, a copy of a translated transcript from Iran reportedly shows the Foreign Minister was unaware of Israeli military operations in Syria until he was informed of the strikes by then Secretary of State John Kerry.
“Kerry told me that Israel had launched 200 airstrikes against you [Iran],” said Zarif. “You didn’t know?” asked his interviewer. “No, no,” he confirmed.
“If this transcript is confirmed, John Kerry must resign immediately and if he doesn’t, President Biden must fire him immediately,” posted Ted Cruz on Twitter.
If this transcript is confirmed, John Kerry must resign immediately and if he doesn’t, President Biden must fire him immediately. https://t.co/mpyxFEBf4e
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) April 30, 2021
Hoo boy. https://t.co/9OOzdkpvYi
— Mollie (@MZHemingway) April 30, 2021
Original Story: April 28th, 2021
Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo blasted his predecessor this week after leaked audio claims John Kerry was divulging Israeli military secrets to Iran; saying the top Obama official was “briefing” Tehran while he was briefing Donald Trump.
“Looks like from this reporting it’s confirmed what we already believed, which is when I was briefing President Trump, Kerry was briefing Zarif on intelligence that related to Israeli operations,” he said.
“I hope that’s not true. John Kerry needs to come forward and speak to the American people and explain to them why he was meeting with Zarif.”
“We believe he was absolutely telling the Iranians ‘hang on, this pressure campaign; the power that is being exerted by America against you, it’ll be over, [Biden] will win this election, it’ll be 4 years you can hang in there, don’t for a minute negotiate with the Trump team’. So he has an awful lot of explaining to do.”
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki refused to comment on the situation Tuesday.
“In tapes obtained by the New York Times, the Iranian Foreign Minister said John Kerry informed him of Israelis attacking Iranian interests at least 200 times,” pressed one reporter.
“We’re not going to comment on leaked tapes,” said Psaki.
From Fox News:
Iranian foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif claimed in leaked audio that then-U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry informed him of more than 200 Israeli operations in Syria.
Kerry has previously been accused of colluding with Iranian leaders to undermine the Trump administration. Kerry is now a part of the Biden administration and has a seat on the National Security Council as the special presidential envoy for climate.
Kerry shocked Zarif by revealing that Israel had attacked Iranian targets in Syria more than 200 times, according to leaked audio obtained by The New York Times and other outlets.
Zarif also spoke frankly about his limited power compared to Ayatollah Ali Khameini and the blow the U.S. dealt to Iran by killing Gen. Qassem Soleimani in January 2020.
Kerry faced criticism on Monday over Zarif’s claim.
“John Kerry was ratting out Israeli covert operations in Syria directly to the Iranian foreign minister. Let that sink in. Wow,” Noah Pollak of the foreign policy-focused Democratic Alliance Group wrote on Twitter.
Read the full report at Fox News.
DEEP STATE DEPARTMENT: Trump BLASTS Kerry Over ‘Shadow Diplomacy’
President Trump unloaded on former Secretary of State John Kerry Monday morning; accusing the senior Obama aide of engaging in “illegal shadow diplomacy” over his alleged involvement in trying to save the failing Iranian nuclear agreement.
The Commander-in-Chief called-out Kerry on social media after multiple media reports accused the former diplomat of working behind-the-scenes to help salvage Barack Obama’s signature international “achievement.”
“The United States does not need John Kerry’s possibly illegal Shadow Diplomacy on the very badly negotiated Iran Deal. He was the one that created this MESS in the first place!” Trump tweeted.
The United States does not need John Kerry’s possibly illegal Shadow Diplomacy on the very badly negotiated Iran Deal. He was the one that created this MESS in the first place!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 7, 2018
The President’s comments come just days before he’s expected to announce his decision regarding the Iranian nuclear deal; calling on American allies like the UK and France to help “re-negotiate” a better agreement.
DEEP STATE DEPT. President Trump Says John Kerry ‘Should be Prosecuted’ for Iran Involvement
President Trump slammed former Secretary of State John Kerry Thursday for his continued ties to Tehran; accusing the top Obama aide of violating the Logan Act that prohibits non-officials from interfering with foreign governments.
“You know John Kerry speaks to them a lot, and John Kerry tells them not to call. That’s a violation of the Logan Act, and frankly he should be prosecuted on that,” Trump told reporters at the White House.
“But my people don’t want to do anything, only the Democrats do that kind of stuff. If it were the opposite way, they’d prosecute him under the Logan Act,” he said.
Watch: Trump says former U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry "should be prosecuted" under the Logan Act for interfering with potential negotiations with Iran: "Plain and simple, he shouldn't be doing that." https://t.co/2Ejtn8R7Wu pic.twitter.com/3LCaXJ1g8A
— Newsweek (@Newsweek) May 9, 2019
Kerry made global headlines last year when he admitted to continued contacts with Iranian officials, saying “What I have done is tried to elicit from him what Iran might be willing to do in order to change the dynamic in the Middle East for the better.”