ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Iran’s foreign ministry on Thursday condemned the overnight US attack on the southern port of Bandar Abbas, describing it as a violation of international law and warning of Tehran’s right to take all necessary measures to defend its sovereignty.

Tehran and Washington exchanged fire overnight after the US said it carried out defensive strikes in southern Iran against sites it said were preparing for an imminent attack, while Tehran said it responded by striking a US base in the region.

The developments do not mark the first instance of Tehran and Washington accusing each other of breaching the April ceasefire as the two sides exchanged fire.

Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei, while strongly condemning the overnight attacks, said “these aggressive actions against the territorial integrity and national sovereignty of Iran are a gross violation of international law and the UN Charter,” state broadcaster IRIB reported. 

“The UN Security Council is obligated to fulfill its legal responsibility to hold the American aggressors accountable,” he added.

Baghaei stressed Tehran’s “determination to take all necessary measures to defend Iran’s national sovereignty and territorial integrity,” in accordance with international law, while citing what it described as US violations of the ceasefire since April.

Earlier on Thursday, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it struck a US base used to launch attacks on southern Iran, describing the operation as “a serious warning.”

“Following the attack of the US aggressor army at dawn today on a point on the outskirts of Bandar Abbas airport with aerial projectiles, the US air base from which the aggression originated was targeted at 4:50 am,” the IRGC said. 

As Washington and Tehran exchanged fire, the Kuwaiti army soon after said the country’s air defense systems were “currently confronting hostile missile and drone attacks.”

The renewed hostilities came days after signs of progress in negotiations between Tehran and Washington, with Iranian state media publishing what it said was a draft memorandum of understanding with the White House, dismissing the document as “completely fabricated.”

Earlier on Saturday, US President Donald Trump said that an agreement was "largely negotiated" with the Iranian side and awaited finalization, following a series of indirect negotiations through Pakistani mediators.