Iran’s Foreign Ministry said Sunday that Gulf states allowing the United States to use their territory for military operations against Iran remain legitimate targets, warning strikes on American bases in the region will continue as long as such cooperation persists.
The ministry, in a statement carried by Iranian media, accused Gulf monarchies of turning their countries into staging grounds for what it called an illegal war against Iran, arguing under international law that neighboring states are obligated to prevent an aggressor from using their territory for military action against Tehran. A separate Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Iran’s strikes on US bases in the southern Persian Gulf constitute lawful self-defense rather than acts of aggression, rejecting the framing of Iran as the attacking party.
The warning followed a fourth consecutive night of US strikes on Iranian territory early Monday. Iran responded over the weekend with missile and drone attacks on US military sites in Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman, part of a broader pattern in which Tehran has repeatedly targeted Gulf states hosting American forces since the conflict began in late February. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard separately claimed strikes on logistics and refueling sites used by US aircraft carriers in Oman, as well as on Qatar’s Al Udeid air base.
Gulf governments have condemned the continued attacks. Qatar’s Foreign Ministry called the strikes a dangerous escalation that undermines regional stability efforts and held Iran fully responsible for the consequences, while urging all parties to return seriously to negotiations. Oman took the rare step of summoning Iran’s ambassador to protest the strikes, the first such move since fighting began, calling the attacks irresponsible.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres called on all sides to exercise maximum restraint and take immediate steps to de-escalate. The exchange comes after a ceasefire, formalized through a memorandum of understanding signed June 17, began unraveling amid disputes over the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, with Iran declaring the waterway closed until stability is restored while the US and its Gulf partners maintain it remains open through an alternate transit corridor in Omani waters.
