Iran to halt strikes on neighbours unless attacks originate from there

TEHRAN, Iran (MNTV) — Iran has announced it will stop launching strikes on neighboring countries unless attacks on the Islamic Republic originate from their territory, as the war triggered by United States and Israeli strikes on Iran enters its second week.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said the country’s interim leadership council had approved a decision to halt attacks on regional states, while apologizing for recent strikes that hit several Gulf countries hosting American military assets.

“The council has decided that neighboring countries will no longer be targeted and no missiles will be fired unless an attack on Iran originates from their territory,” Pezeshkian said in remarks broadcast on Iranian state media.

The announcement comes after days of escalating retaliation across the Middle East following large-scale airstrikes launched by the United States and Israel on Iran, which ignited the current regional war.

Retaliation after US-Israeli strikes

Iran has launched missile and drone attacks on Israeli targets and US-linked military facilities across the Gulf in response to the campaign. Several Gulf states — including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain — have reported interceptions of Iranian missiles and drones during the conflict.

Many of those countries host American military bases or logistical facilities used by the United States in the region, making them potential targets in Tehran’s retaliation against Washington and Tel Aviv.

Iranian officials have repeatedly argued that the strikes were directed at US military infrastructure rather than neighboring states themselves.

The conflict erupted after coordinated attacks by the United States and Israel targeted Iranian military and political infrastructure, triggering a wave of Iranian counter-strikes across the region and raising fears of a wider Middle East war.

Trump threatens further escalation

Despite Tehran’s statement signaling conditional restraint toward neighboring countries, the United States has continued to issue threats of escalation.

US President Donald Trump warned that Iran could face even heavier bombing, saying Washington was considering expanding the range of targets.

“Today Iran will be hit very hard,” Trump wrote on social media, adding that additional areas and groups could soon be targeted without specifying details.

Trump has also demanded Iran’s “unconditional surrender”, a demand rejected by Tehran.

Responding to the remarks, Pezeshkian said such demands were unrealistic and insisted Iran would continue defending itself under international law.

Even as the president announced the conditional halt on attacks against neighbors, Iran’s powerful military institution, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, warned that US and Israeli military assets across the region remain legitimate targets.

In a statement carried by Iranian media, the IRGC said any continued attacks on Iran would lead to “powerful and crushing strikes” against American bases and Israeli interests throughout the Middle East.

Analysts say the Revolutionary Guard plays a dominant role in Iran’s security policy and military strategy, particularly during wartime.

Regional fallout growing

The war has already disrupted flights, forced airspace closures across parts of the Gulf and threatened energy exports from the region.

Energy officials have warned that continued escalation could disrupt shipments passing through the Strait of Hormuz — one of the world’s most important oil transit chokepoints.

Global markets have already reacted nervously as fighting between Iran, the United States and Israel risks widening into a broader regional conflict.

Meanwhile, the humanitarian toll continues to rise, with reports indicating that more than 1,200 people have been killed in Iran during the first week of US-Israeli attacks.