Iran has ruled out the possibility of a ceasefire amid ongoing hostilities, with Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei saying Tehran will focus solely on defence and retaliation as long as attacks against the country continue.Speaking to Iran’s Student News Network, Baghaei said Iran would keep targeting facilities used by what it calls aggressors while avoiding confrontation with neighbouring Muslim states.“There is no point in talking about anything but defence and crushing retaliation against enemies,” Baghaei said, stressing that Iran would continue to defend itself while the strikes persist.He also denied allegations that Iran had launched attacks against Turkey, Azerbaijan and Cyprus, claiming instead that such incidents were “false flag attacks” intended to frame Tehran and escalate tensions in the region.Baghaei reiterated that Iran has “no war to fight with its Muslim neighbours.” He further added that Tehran’s operations are aimed only at sites used by hostile forces. According to him, these actions are part of what Iran describes as its legitimate right to self-defence.Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Saturday also issued an apology for Iran’s recent strikes on neighbouring countries allied with the United States, as the conflict in West Asia entered its second week.He said Tehran would refrain from attacking neighbouring nations unless they launched attacks against Iran first.In a speech broadcast on state television, Pezeshkian said he regretted the strikes and emphasised that Iran did not intend to target nearby countries. According to AFP, he stated that Iran’s interim leadership council had decided to halt further attacks on neighbouring states unless an assault on Iran originated from their territory.“I must apologise on my own behalf and on behalf of Iran to the neighbouring countries that were attacked by Iran,” Pezeshkian said. He added that the council had agreed that “no more attacks will be made on neighbouring countries and no missiles will be fired unless an attack on Iran originates from those countries.”Baghaei further accused the United States of pursuing Iran’s oil resources and seeking to weaken and potentially fragment the country, saying Washington’s broader objective is to undermine Iran’s stability.The remarks come as tensions in West Asia remain high, with missile and drone exchanges continuing across parts of the Gulf and neighbouring regions. Iran has repeatedly said its military actions are retaliatory measures in response to attacks and pressure from its adversaries.
