Iran warns regional states over US bases amid ceasefire tensions

Iran's supreme leader has warned that regional countries will no longer act as shields for US bases, in a written statement carried by state television. The remarks by Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei were issued in a message marking the Eid al-Adha holiday and come as Iran and the United States continue exchanges aimed at reaching a deal to end the war that began on 28 February. A fragile ceasefire has been in place since 8 April, but both sides have continued to accuse each other of violations.

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In the statement, Khamenei said the region's nations and lands would no longer serve as protection for American military sites. He also said the United States was losing its former position in the region and had no safe haven there for aggression or the establishment of military bases. The comments were made after Iran's foreign ministry said Tehran and Washington had reached understandings on many issues in talks over a possible deal, while warning that an agreement was not yet imminent.

The Revolutionary Guards said on the same morning that they had downed a US drone and fired at other aircraft that tried to enter Iranian airspace. They did not specify when those incidents took place. In the same statement, they warned against any violation of the ceasefire by what they called the aggressor US military and said they reserved the right to a reciprocal response.

The claims have not been independently verified in the material provided. The latest exchange matters because it comes against the backdrop of a conflict that has already spread across the region and remains highly unstable. The ceasefire has held only since 8 April, and the two sides are still engaged in military and diplomatic pressure at the same time.

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The warning over US bases also raises the stakes for regional states that host American forces or are seen as part of the wider security environment around the confrontation. The row follows earlier strikes and counter-strikes that have shaped the current crisis. The material says Mojtaba Khamenei succeeded his father Ali Khamenei after he was killed in the opening US-Israel strikes of 28 February, which triggered retaliatory attacks by Tehran across the region.

It also says the US Central Command reported attacks on missile sites in southern Iran and on boats it said were trying to lay mines, despite the ceasefire. Iranian state media reported blasts in Bandar Abbas, but did not say what caused them. What remains unclear is the timing and scale of the drone incident claimed by the Revolutionary Guards, and whether the reported ceasefire violations will lead to further military action.

It is also not clear how far the talks between Tehran and Washington have progressed, despite claims of understandings on several issues. The next developments to watch are any official US response, any confirmation of the reported strikes, and whether the fragile ceasefire can hold.

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