Iran said it does not want to exacerbate regional tensions but believes that punishment against Israel is necessary to prevent further instability, the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman said Monday following the killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran last week.
“Iran seeks to establish stability in the region, but this can only be achieved by punishing the aggressor and preventing further actions by the Zionist regime (Israel),” Nasser Kanaani said, underlining that such steps by Tehran were inevitable.
Kanaani called on the United States to stop supporting Israel. He also argued that the international community has failed in its duty to maintain stability in the region, and therefore must support efforts to impose “punishment on the aggressor.”
Iran's Foreign Ministry summoned ambassadors and heads of missions in Tehran to meet with acting Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri Kani on Monday to reaffirm Iran's determination to respond to Israel's actions.
An emergency meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation will be held on Wednesday (7/8) at Iran's request to discuss the killing of Haniyeh and Iran's response, Kanaani said.
Tehran and Iran-aligned groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah accused Israel of killing Haniyeh on July 31 in the Iranian capital. His death was one of a series of assassinations of senior Hamas figures as the Gaza war between Hamas and Israel approaches its 11th month.
Israeli officials have not claimed responsibility for the incident.
Commander-in-Chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Hossein Salami on Monday (5/8) repeated the elite group's threat that Israel “will receive its punishment in due time”. (ah/rs)
