Iran’s security chief warns US bases in Europe and distant islands could be hit in any new clash
Iran’s top security official Mohsen Rezaei warned that any fresh US attack on Iran would trigger strikes on American bases far from the region and on islands Washington believes are beyond Iranian missiles. The message puts host countries on notice that their territory could be drawn into any renewed confrontation.
Iran is publicly trying to raise the cost of any future US strike, warning that American forces based far from the Middle East would not be spared.
General Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said that if the United States launches a new attack against Iran, Tehran will answer by striking US military bases farther from the region, including facilities Iran has not yet targeted. He also said Iran might hit “some islands they think our missiles cannot reach.”
Rezaei advised governments that host US military bases not to cooperate with any American operation against Iran. He said Iran will consider any location from which US aircraft take off for an attack to be a threat, and argued that Tehran is spelling this out in advance so those states will not be able to claim surprise later.
In his comments, Rezaei described a potential US move as a “foolish” act and claimed that former US president Donald Trump and Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu have, in his view, exhausted their political capacity to continue the war. He said they would therefore aim for a short campaign lasting three to five days and are still looking for a target that could deliver what they would count as a significant achievement in that time.
For countries in Europe and other regions that host US air bases, logistics hubs or other facilities, the warning is direct: if their territory is used in an attack on Iran, Tehran will treat it as part of the battlefield. That raises the political and security stakes for governments weighing how far to support any future US military option.
The comments also underline a long-standing Iranian approach of threatening to widen any conflict rather than keep fighting contained to its own territory. By talking about “distant American bases” and islands assumed to be out of range, Rezaei is signaling that Iran wants US planners, host governments and investors to factor in the risk of a geographically broader exchange if tensions escalate.
Signals to watch now include whether European and other host governments adjust the posture of US forces on their soil or seek clarifications from Washington, and whether US officials issue new guidance on how they would use overseas bases in any confrontation with Iran.
Sources
- OSINT