Defence minister: Iranian missiles near Cyprus not aimed at UK bases

UK Defence Secretary John Healey said that two Iranian missiles were fired in the direction of Cyprus, where British military bases are located, stressing that the projectiles were not believed to have been aimed directly at UK facilities.

“We are pretty sure they weren’t targeted at our bases,” he said, adding that the incident nevertheless demonstrated “how indiscriminate” Iran’s retaliation has been.

Healey also revealed that around 300 British military personnel were stationed close to missile targets in Bahrain. “Some of them were within several hundred yards of the missile strikes,” he noted.

The defence secretary made the remarks during morning broadcast interviews a day after Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced that the UK had ordered “planes in the sky” over the Middle East to conduct defensive operations.

Repeating the prime minister’s position, Healey urged Iran to halt its actions, calling on Tehran to end its missile attacks, “steps back from its increasing uncontrolled indiscriminate attacks in the region” and “gives up its weapons programs.”

The comments came amid escalating tensions following waves of US and Israeli strikes on Iran described as preemptive operations targeting military infrastructure and senior leadership figures, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Speaking to Trevor Phillips on Sky News, Healey said: “Few people will mourn the Ayatollah’s death.” He added that his primary concern now was the broader regional consequences of the attacks on Iran.

Healey pointed to what he described as Iran’s hostile activities, citing 20 alleged terror plots on UK soil, the deaths of tens of thousands of Iranian citizens, and the supply of 50,000 drones to Russia for use against Ukraine.

“Make no mistake that this is a regime which harasses other countries and can never be allowed to have a nuclear weapon,” he said.

“No one who has seen the way that Iran has menaced us and sponsored terror around the world, been a source of instability in the region, is developing a nuclear weapons program, can be under any doubt about the character of this regime, and the threat it poses.”

Asked whether US military action was legal, Healey responded: “That is for the US to set out and explain. It's not for me, as defence secretary of the UK, I'm here to speak for the UK.

“I can speak for the very active participation that we have in coordinated defence across the region.”

He emphasized that “everything the UK does is within international law,” while declining to say whether Britain could be drawn into direct military operations alongside the US and Israel.

Describing current British deployments, Healey said: “When our UK planes fly from Qatar, they are protecting against any missiles or drones directed towards Qatar.

“When they fly from Cyprus, they're doing the same for Cyprus.

“But of course, when our planes are in the air and they see things, missiles or drones directed towards other countries, they'll take them down.

“So when I talk about Britain playing a role in reinforcing regional stability as part of co-ordinated regional defensive operations, that's what I mean.”

By Tamilla Hasanova