Bahrain's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has condemned what it described as "a resumption of Iran's aggression" after the latest air attacks on the kingdom's Riffa Air Base, a facility used by the United States military.
In a statement, the ministry said the strikes launched on Sunday by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) violated international law and that "no pretext can legitimise violations of state sovereignty". It added that Bahrain "rejects the use of its territory to settle accounts and holds Iran fully responsible for the attacks and their consequences".
Bahrain's military said its defence systems intercepted several Iranian aerial attacks targeting the kingdom. The IRGC has not commented on the latest incident. The Guards had said on Friday that they attacked a US early warning radar facility in Bahrain and destroyed it, while Manama said it intercepted two drones that day.
Al Jazeera's Resul Serdar, reporting from Tehran, noted that Iran had held back in recent weeks despite intermittent US attacks on its military assets, including telecommunications towers in the south of the country, but has now fired at Bahrain twice in the past three days. "It seems this is now the new rule of engagement," he added.
Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei defended the attacks at a news conference on Sunday and accused Gulf countries of aiding US strikes against Iran. "All the cases that indicate the role of the countries of the region in helping the US to attack Iran have been documented," he said, adding that Tehran was taking diplomatic action and would "follow up on this issue seriously".
Baghaei said missiles, drones and aircraft launched from military bases in neighbouring countries, along with logistical support provided to US forces, amounted to proof of those nations' involvement. He charged that "the responsibility of this group of countries in the region for the consequences .. of the military aggression of the United States and the Zionist regime against Iran is clear", referring to Israel.
He argued that attacks on Iran's neighbours were justified under Article 51 of the United Nations Charter, which affirms the right of states to defend themselves. "No action has been taken by Iran against the sovereignty of these countries," he said, describing Tehran's strikes as "purely defensive in nature" and aimed only at US military bases and assets used to attack Iran.
Regional governments rallied behind Bahrain. Jordan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates said in a post on X that it "condemned Iran's brutal attacks on the sister kingdom of Bahrain as a flagrant violation of its sovereignty, a threat to its security, stability and territorial integrity".
Egypt's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Cairo "reiterates its categorical rejection" of attacks threatening the region's stability, adding that "the security of Bahrain and the Gulf states is closely linked to Egyptian national security and is one of the pillars of Arab national security".
