Iran has launched missile strikes toward the Mediterranean island nation of Cyprus, according to the United Kingdom’s defense secretary, amid rapidly escalating tensions across the Middle East.
Speaking to Sky News, UK Defense Secretary John Healey said two missiles were fired from Iran in the direction of Cyprus on Sunday. He noted that thousands of British troops are currently stationed on the island, which hosts key UK military bases.
“We do not assess that the missiles were directly targeting Cyprus,” Healey said. “However, it is clear that one country is responding across the region in a significant way. The threat is real and growing, and this situation compels us to take appropriate measures.”
Cyprus hosts British sovereign base areas, including RAF Akrotiri, which play a strategic role in regional operations.
The latest development comes after Iran reportedly carried out missile attacks in Bahrain on Saturday. According to the British defense secretary, one of the missiles landed only a few hundred yards from a location where British troops were stationed.
In a statement released Sunday, Iran’s elite military wing, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), said it had launched missile and drone attacks on 27 U.S. military bases across the Middle East from Saturday into Sunday morning.
The United States maintains military installations in more than a dozen countries in the region, including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates and Egypt.
The IRGC also claimed responsibility for strikes targeting Israeli sites, including the Tel Nof airbase, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) command headquarters in Tel Aviv’s HaKirya district, and a major defense industrial complex in Tel Aviv.
Putin Condemns Khamenei’s Killing as ‘Brutal Assassination’
Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin has expressed deep condolences to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian over the reported killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei
In a statement carried by Russian state news agency TASS, Putin described Khamenei’s death in a U.S.-Israeli strike as a “brutal assassination” and a “gross violation of international law and fundamental human values.”
The developments mark a dramatic escalation in regional hostilities, raising fears of a broader conflict involving multiple state actors across the Middle East.
