Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Saturday that its temporary leadership council had approved the suspension of attacks against neighboring countries unless an attack on Iran came from those countries.
The announcement came as Iran continued to launch attacks in the region in response to US-Israeli strikes on the Islamic Republic.
Reuters has reported further developments:
Israel and Iran traded attacks on Saturday as the war entered its second week, while Tehran issued an apology to neighbouring states for its “actions”, in an apparent bid to ease regional anger at Iranian strikes on Gulf Arab civilian targets.
The US-Israeli war on Iran has already spilled beyond Iran’s borders, as Tehran has responded by hitting Israel and Gulf Arab states hosting US military installations and Israel has attacked Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah armed group.
The UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia have all reported drone and missile attacks over the past week.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Iran’s temporary leadership council had approved suspending attacks on nearby countries – unless an attack on Iran came from those nations.
“I personally apologise to neighbouring countries that were affected by Iran’s actions,” he said.
How far Pezeshkian’s statement reflects a decision to back off by Iran, or why, is not yet clear, with some strikes still reportedly directed at Gulf states on Saturday morning.
Iran had mended fences with its Gulf neighbours in recent years, including with Saudi Arabia.
