Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has issued an apology to neighbouring countries affected by Iran’s missile and drone strikes in the ongoing conflict involving Israel and the United States.
The strikes, which targeted multiple US military bases in Gulf countries including Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Kuwait, were launched as retaliation for what Tehran called “preemptive” attacks by the US and Israel.
Earlier, Mahdavi Raja defended Iran’s actions, telling TheCable that Tehran considered it within its rights to strike the Gulf countries, even those maintaining friendly relations with Iran. He noted that many of the US strikes had been launched from military bases in the surrounding Arab nations. Iran has consistently maintained it would not yield in defending itself.
However, in a video address broadcast on Iranian state television on Saturday, President Pezeshkian adopted a more conciliatory tone.
“I deem it necessary to apologise to neighbouring countries that were attacked,” he said. “We do not intend to invade neighbouring countries.”
He further called for regional cooperation to “establish peace and calm” and stated that a leadership directive has been issued to the armed forces to “not attack neighbouring countries unless attacked first.”
Addressing those who might consider taking advantage of the situation, Pezeshkian warned: “Those considering exploiting this moment to attack Iran must not become puppets of imperialism.” He also added that supporting Israel or the US “is not a path to honour and freedom.”
The president’s statement marks a shift from Iran’s earlier, more aggressive posture in the escalating Gulf tensions.
