The Iranian ambassador to the UK is to complain formally about a frontpage article in the Times claiming that Iranian generals are prepared to kill British troops in response to the assassination of Qassem Suleimani.

Hamid Baeidinejad said he strongly condemned “the vicious lie and provocative news by the Times today”.

He added on Twitter: “I will ask the concerned UK authorities to take swift action to stop such malicious false propaganda in this very sensitive time”. The embassy later confirmed it would be writing to the press regulator Ipso to make a formal complaint, as well as sending a letter to the newspaper.

The story was headlined “We will kill UK troops, warns Iran”. Although the embassy frequently takes issue with the slant of specific stories in the British press, including what it feels is anti-Iranian bias, it is rare for the ambassador to threaten a formal complaint.

The Iranian response also reveals the extent to which Tehran is eager not to be seen to be putting European countries in the same category as the US.

The Times article quotes an unnamed senior commander in the Quds Force, the international wing of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards corps, saying that British troops could be collateral damage in attacks on the US military.

The commander was reported as saying: “Our forces will retaliate and target US troops in the Middle East without any concern about killing its allies, including UK troops as this has turned into a fully fledged war with much collateral damage expected.”

The commander is later quoted as saying that the UK and other Nato allies should not stand with Trump.

The UK has said it had no advance knowledge of the attack on Suleimani, but has so far neither condemned nor condoned the attack, with the prime minister, Boris Johnson, saying he did not lament Suleimani’s death.

The British stance has led to criticism from the US secretary of state, Mike Pompeo. British troops are based inside Iraq at three distinct bases, but more broadly British troops throughout the Middle East intermingle with US and other coalition forces.

Some of the mourners at Suleimani’s funeral on Monday were photographed holding posters with pictures of Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, and Emmanuel Macron, the French president, in the crosshairs of a gun.

The Lebanese Hezbollah leader, Hassan Nasrallah, also sought on Sunday to draw a distinction between American citizens and the US military, saying: “I want to be very clear, we don’t mean the American people. All across the region there are American citizens – traders, journalists, engineers, and doctors. They cannot be touched … any harm to US civilians will only serve Trump’s agenda.”