Iran will not hesitate to react to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's "threat regarding nuclear weapons" made during his United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) speech, Iranian Ambassador Amir Saeed Iravani condemned in a Tuesday letter to the UN.
The Iranian response to Netanyahu’s speech was reported on Wednesday by the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA). IRNA is funded and operated by the Iranian government.
"We will not hesitate to exercise our legitimate and inherent rights to defend our national interests," the ambassador wrote in the letter, according to IRNA.
"By order of our government, I would like to draw the Security Council's attention to the recent alarming and serious threat by the Israeli Prime Minister regarding the use of nuclear weapons against Iran," Iravani wrote.
During his UNGA speech, Netanyahu asserted that “Iran must face a credible nuclear threat.” adding, “As long as I'm Prime Minister of Israel, I will do everything in my power to prevent Iran from getting nuclear weapons.”
The Prime Minister’s Office clarified Netanyahu’s comments after the General Assembly speech, saying that the prime minister meant to say “military threat.” According to the report, the Prime Minister's office noted that a “military threat” rather than a “nuclear threat” was what had been written down in the prime minister’s speech notes.
Iran: Nuclear weapons pose a threat to humanity’s existence
"Considering that nuclear weapons pose a threat to the existence of humanity and the planet Earth, such a threat is incomparable in intensity and sends a shockwave to the international community, especially when such a threat is articulated from a credible forum like the United Nations General Assembly,” Iravani continued in the letter. “The use or even the mere threat of using nuclear weapons, regardless of circumstances, by anyone, at any time, and in any place, constitutes a clear violation of international laws.”
The Iranian ambassador added that the threat was especially serious as it comes from Israel, a nation whose government the letter describes as an “illegitimate regime” that is guilty of apartheid and support for terrorism.