TEHRAN – Iran's permanent mission to the United Nations has asserted that a retaliatory response to the Israeli assassination of former Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran is inevitable, regardless of ongoing ceasefire talks in Gaza. 

In a statement to American media, the mission stressed, "Establishment of sustainable ceasefire in Gaza is our top priority. Any deal that Hamas agrees on will be acceptable to us as well."

However, the mission also emphasized that "We have the right to legitimate defense, which is unrelated to the Gaza ceasefire. But we hope our response will be given at a time and manner that would not harm the likely ceasefire."

The statement comes after Israel's assassination of Haniyeh in Tehran on July 31. The late Hamas leader was in the Iranian capital to attend the new president's swearing-in ceremony.

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei has already warned of a "harsh response" for Haniyeh's assassination, calling it the Islamic Republic's duty to avenge the Palestinian resistance leader's blood. 

Tehran, Washington have always had channels to communicate

Asked about the existence of messaging channels between Iran and the U.S., the mission confirmed that "there have always been formal direct and mediatory channels for the exchange of messages between Iran and the U.S. Both parties prefer the details to remain undisclosed."

The remarks come after Matthew Miller, the spokesperson for the U.S. Department of State, said on Thursday, “I will let all of the countries in the region speak to what diplomatic engagements they might have had with Iran. But obviously, one of the points of the engagements that we have had is to urge countries to pass messages to Iran and urge countries to make clear to Iran that it is very much not in their interests to escalate this conflict, that it is very much not in their interests to launch another attack on Israel.”

No weapons for Russia until Ukraine war over

The Iranian UN mission also commented on recent allegations of missile transfer to Russia, stating that Iran will not deliver any weapons to Moscow until the conflict in Ukraine has come to a conclusion. 

In response to recent claims that Tehran is poised to deliver hundreds of Fath-360 close-range ballistic missiles to Russia, the mission emphasized that while Iran and Russia have established long-term strategic cooperation agreements across various sectors, including military, "legally, Iran is under no restrictions or prohibitions regarding the purchase or sale of conventional weapons."

However, the mission added, “From an ethical standpoint, Iran refrains from transferring any weapons, including missiles, that could potentially be used in the conflict with Ukraine until it is over.”

This statement follows a report by Reuters indicating that numerous Russian military personnel are currently being trained in Iran to operate the Fath-360 missile system. Citing two European intelligence sources, Reuters also suggested that the delivery of hundreds of these satellite-guided weapons to Russia is expected imminently for its operations in Ukraine.