Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi: "I do not know why the Americans and the Israelis still have not understood this point. The Islamic Republic of Iran has a strong political structure with established political, economic, and social institutions. The presence or absence of a single individual does not affect this structure. We have not had anyone more important than the leader himself. And even when the leader was martyred, the system continued to work and immediately provided a replacement. If anyone else is martyred, it will be the same. If the foreign minister were ever to be martyred, there would ultimately be someone else to take the position."