Iran has officially announced the end of its offensive military operations against Israel, while warning that any future attack on southern Lebanon would be treated as a direct attack on Iran’s regional allies and would trigger an immediate response against Israel.
The announcement was made on Monday on the Iranian military’s Facebook page, signaling a possible de-escalation after days of heightened tensions that threatened to reignite a broader Middle East conflict.
“A new equation has now been established: Any attack on Southern Lebanon = A direct strike on Israel,” the military said.
The declaration came hours after United States President Donald Trump publicly called on both Israel and Iran to cease hostilities following a fresh exchange of missile strikes that shattered weeks of relative calm after an April ceasefire.
Trump, writing on his Truth Social platform, urged both sides to stop firing as fears mounted that the conflict could spiral into a wider regional war involving Lebanon, Yemen and key shipping routes across the Middle East.
The latest escalation began after Israel launched strikes on targets inside Iran, including the Mahshahr Petrochemical Plant in the country’s southwest and what Israeli officials described as strategic military installations. Israel said the operation targeted Iranian air defence systems that had been rebuilt after earlier US-Israeli military actions.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards responded by launching missiles at a petrochemical facility in Haifa, northern Israel, accusing Israel of crossing a red line by targeting civilian and energy infrastructure.
The confrontation marked the first direct military exchange between the two countries since a ceasefire took effect on April 8.
Despite the renewed violence, Trump insisted that diplomatic efforts to secure a broader settlement with Tehran remained on track.
“It’s not going to have any impact on the deal. I call the shots. I call all the shots. He doesn’t call the shots,” Trump told the Financial Times in an apparent reference to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
According to Reuters, the remarks highlighted growing friction between Washington and Jerusalem, with reports suggesting Trump had privately urged Netanyahu to avoid military action in Lebanon in order to preserve ongoing negotiations aimed at ending the wider regional conflict.
However, Israel carried out strikes near Beirut on Sunday, the first such attacks since the US unveiled a ceasefire proposal for Lebanon. Iran subsequently launched retaliatory missile salvos against Israeli targets.
The military exchanges triggered widespread disruption across the region’s airspace. Flight-tracking services showed large sections of skies over Iran, Iraq and Syria largely deserted as authorities imposed emergency restrictions.
Iran suspended flights at Tehran’s Mehrabad Airport indefinitely, while Syria temporarily closed its southern airspace and halted operations at Damascus International Airport. Iraq also shut its airspace and suspended air navigation services for 72 hours.
The crisis has attracted growing international concern. European Union defence ministers meeting in Cyprus on Monday discussed the implications of the conflict for regional stability, energy security and global maritime trade.
Global energy markets also reacted sharply to the renewed fighting. Brent crude oil rose more than four percent to above $97 per barrel, while US crude futures climbed by a similar margin amid fears that the conflict could disrupt shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a vital route for global oil and gas supplies.
Meanwhile, Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi movement announced a ban on Israeli maritime navigation in the Red Sea and claimed responsibility for missile attacks targeting Israel. Israeli authorities said their air defence systems intercepted a missile launched from Yemen, with no casualties reported.
While Iran’s announcement ending its offensive operations may ease immediate fears of a full-scale war, the warning linking attacks on southern Lebanon to direct strikes on Israel introduces a new strategic doctrine that could further complicate efforts to maintain stability in the region.
Nanji is an investigative journalist with the ICIR. She has years of experience in reporting and broadcasting human angle stories, gender inequalities, minority stories, and human rights issues. She has documented sexual war crimes in armed conflict, sex for grades in Nigerian Universities, harmful traditional practices and human trafficking.