U.S. State Department Rejects Iranian Media Reports on Message from the Islamic Republic to Washington

Matthew Miller, spokesperson for the U.S. State Department, responded to a question from the Persian section of Voice of America regarding reports of a message from Tehran to Washington about conditions for not retaliating against a recent attack on its consulate in Damascus, stating, "Those reports are not accurate. They have not sent such a message." Some media in Iran claimed on Monday, April 8, that the Islamic Republic had communicated to the U.S. government that if it guarantees a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip soon, it would then refrain from its "retaliatory attack." According to these reports, the alleged message was sent through Oman, and a second condition was also mentioned, which is that Israel should refrain from a ground attack on the city of Rafah in the Gaza Strip. Matthew Miller continued his response to Voice of America by saying, "If Iran wants a ceasefire in Gaza, it can do that itself." He pointed out the long-term support of the Islamic Republic for Hamas, stating that Tehran "can pressure Hamas to accept the ceasefire terms on the table." The U.S. State Department spokesperson rejected the idea of pressuring the Israeli government for this purpose, arguing that Israel has "regularly been a victim of Hamas and Hezbollah terrorism." Reports from within Iran claimed that the Islamic Republic indicated in its message to Washington that its target for retaliation against the attack on its consulate in Damascus is Israel. The U.S. State Department spokesperson reminded that Tehran has been warned not to take advantage of the opportunity to attack U.S. forces in the region. Earlier on Monday, the White House Coordinator for Strategic Communications also rejected reports from some Iranian media regarding the Islamic Republic's message to the United States in a conference call. John Kirby stated, "I really have no opinion on the report that Iran claims. I will refrain from commenting, and to be honest, if Iran wants a ceasefire in Gaza, it should use all means at its disposal to pressure Hamas to accept the agreement that is on the table." A Voice of America reporter also inquired about the U.S. State Department's view on the lifting of sanctions against the Iranian company 'Abar Arvan.' Matthew Miller stated that this decision pertains to the European Union itself, but that company remains on the U.S. sanctions list. He added that this company is a "key player for the Iranian regime in cutting off the Iranian people's access to global internet." The European Union sanctioned 'Abar Arvan' on November 14, 2022, in response to the violent crackdown on protesters over the killing of Mahsa (Zhina) Amini and its role in internet censorship, but removed it from its sanctions list on April 5, 2024. The U.S. sanctioned the technology company 'Abar Arvan,' two of its founders, and an affiliated company on May 31, 2023, for the same reasons as the European Union.