Iran Foreign Minister denied visa to UN

Tehran : Iran's Foreign Minister said on Tuesday he has been informed by UN chief Antonio Guterres that Washington has denied him a visa for a trip to UN headquarters in New York.

"What we know is that the US State Secretary (Mike Pompeo), in a call to the Secretary General of the United Nations, said: 'We did not have time to issue a visa for Mohammad Javad Zarif and we will not issue a visa'," Zarif said.

"The Secretary General responded by saying that it is Iran's right to take part in this session," Iran's top diplomat said, quoted by semi-official news agency ISNA.

So far there has been no official confirmation from Washington that it has rejected Zarif's visa application.

Zarif was speaking to reporters in Tehran at a gathering to promote an Iranian peace plan for the Gulf. His remarks came as Iran held funeral processions on Tuesday for one of its top military commanders killed in a US drone strike in Iraq.

Qasem Soleimani's assassination has sparked a war of words between the arch-foes, with Iran vowing "severe revenge" and US President Donald Trump threatening to hit back hard for any retaliation.

Trump warned on Saturday that Washington had lined up 52 targets if Tehran attacked US personnel or assets.

On Tuesday, Zarif said the US visa decision was "a sign of the bankruptcy of the US government and Trump's regime", according to ISNA.