In a formal letter to the United Nations Security Council, Iran condemned the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of Hamas, which occurred on July 31, 2024, in Tehran.
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The Iranian representative highlighted recent statements made by Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz, who publicly acknowledged Israel's responsibility for Haniyeh's assassination during a Defense Ministry event on December 23, 2024.
This admission marks a significant moment, as it is the first time Israel has openly confessed to its involvement in the killing of a political leader on the territory of a UN member state. The full text of the letter is as follows
Excellency,
Further to our letters dated 31 July and 1 October 2024 (S/2024/584-S/2024/713), regarding the cowardly assassination of Mr. Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of Hamas and former Prime Minister of Palestine, on 31 July 2024 in Tehran, as well as Iran’s legitimate response to this heinous terrorist act, I wish to draw the attention of Your Excellency and the members of the Security Council to recent statements of the Israeli Defense Minister.
On Monday evening of 23 December 2024, during an event attended by the Defense Ministry personnel of this regime, the Israeli Defense Minister, Yisrael Katz, publicly and shamelessly acknowledged that the Israeli regime was responsible for the assassination of Mr. Ismail Haniyeh while he was visiting Tehran to attend the inauguration of Iranian President Dr. Masoud Pezeshkian. This brazen admission marks the first time the Israeli regime has openly confessed to its responsibility for this heinous crime.
This audacious and shameless confession to the assassination of a political leader within the sovereign territory of a United Nations Member State once again underscores the international responsibility of the Israeli regime for its acts of terrorism and aggression. It also reaffirms the legitimacy and legality of Iran’s defensive response on 1 October 2024, as well as Iran’s consistent position that the occupying and terrorist regime of Israel remains the most serious threat to regional and international peace and security.
This regime is now desperately attempting to justify and legitimize its past and future acts of aggression against Yemen's sovereignty and territorial integrity by fabricating baseless allegations against the Islamic Republic of Iran.
The Security Council must not allow the continued impunity of a regime that flagrantly defies international law, destabilizes the region, and threatens and endangers international peace and security. The continued silence of the Security Council, entrusted with the primary responsibility for the maintenance of global peace and security, would not only embolden this terrorist regime to commission more atrocious crimes but also undermine the core principles upon which the United Nations was founded.
I would be grateful if you would circulate the present letter as a document of the Security Council.
