TEHRAN (IRNA) -- The letter of the late Imam Khomeini which Expediency Council Chairman Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani delivered to the press last week in commemoration of Sacred Defense Week was not classified.

Rafsanjani’s office issued a statement saying that the letter had previously been delivered to all commanders of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) and was not placed in the category of classified documents, and thus there were no reservations about publishing it 18 years after Iran accepted the ceasefire to end the eight-year Iraqi imposed war (1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war).

"The statement is a reply to those who criticized Rafsanjani for publishing the letter written by the late Imam Khomeini in 1988 for what they described as a 'classified letter', whereas it had been made public 18 years ago," the statement said.

"The letter has been published once again to give a reply to those who still question why Iran accepted the ceasefire and those challenging the reasons for such an action in the 1980s," it said.