Tehran: Iran has warned that any hotel in the Middle East housing US soldiers will be treated as a legitimate military target in its war with the United States and Israel. The statement marks a sharp escalation in Tehran’s targeting posture indicating its willingness to extend the battlefield into urban areas.
In remarks aired on state television on Thursday, Armed Forces spokesman Abolfazl Shekarchi said: “When all the Americans (forces) go into a hotel, then from our perspective that hotel becomes American … Should we just stand by and let the Americans strike us? When we respond, naturally we have to strike wherever they are.”
According to reports, US servicemembers are now living and working out of standard hotel rooms in several Gulf states.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi accused US soldiers of using residents of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries as “human shields.” In a post on X, he said: “From the outset of this war, US soldiers fled military bases in the GCC to hide in hotels and offices.” He urged hotels across the region to refuse bookings to US troops.
Iran’s semi‑official Fars news agency, citing unnamed security sources, reported that Tehran had sent “firm warnings” to hotels in the region, particularly in the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.
The agency added that Iran’s military had also identified US forces using similar accommodation in Syria, Lebanon, and Djibouti. Tehran accuses its regional neighbours of allowing U.S. forces to operate from their soil, while Gulf states have repeatedly denied facilitating attacks on Iran, reiterating that their territory and airspace would not be used for such purposes.