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In a Truth Social post early Thursday morning, President Donald Trump denied reporting that U.S. military munitions were being depleted due to his war on Iran, and threatened to pursue severe penalties for “leakers” who were telling the media otherwise.

“The ‘leakers’ of these treasonous statements are being hunted down. Long term jail sentences will be sought!” Trump wrote in his post.

Describing individuals as “treasonous” is a serious accusation. If criminal charges are indeed being pursued against the leakers, with treason being the primary claim against them, the maximum penalty if they are found guilty could be death, with the minimum penalty being at least five years in prison.

Trump’s public threats against his own staffers have intensified during the war on Iran, but he has also threatened treason charges against journalists over reporting that includes statements from anonymous officials within the administration.

In March, for example, following reporting that showed the war in a negative light, Trump said that the “fake news” media should “be brought up on Charges for TREASON for the dissemination of false information.”

The Trump Administration Has Lost 75 of 93 First Amendment Cases, Report Finds

Trump is attempting to stem the flow of information to the American public in other ways, too. Last month, it was revealed that the Justice Department subpoenaed the phone records of journalists and their family members in an effort to root out who was leaking information to the press.

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