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War Watch

IAC between Iran and the United Kingdom

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IAC between Iran and the United Kingdom

By juliette

The IAC between Iran and the United Kingdom was triggered on 2 March 2026 when Iran (or its agent) used launched a drone strike against the RAF base in Akrotiri.1C. Sutherland, ‘British Base Hit in Cyprus, U.K. Terror Threat Under Review as Iran War Spreads’, Time, 2 March 2026, Updated 3 March 2026. Minor damage was caused to a hangar.2S. Corbet and M. Hadjicostis, ‘Europe rallies around Cyprus after Iranian drone hits island’, PBS, 9 March 2026; C. Sutherland, ‘British Base Hit in Cyprus, U.K. Terror Threat Under Review as Iran War Spreads’, Time, 2 March 2026, Updated 3 March 2026; G. Blackburn, ‘UK says it is not at war after Iranian drone strikes RAF Akrotiri base in Cyprus’, Euro News, 2 March 2026. In accordance with a host State agreement between the United Kingdom and Cyprus, the United Kingdom exercises British sovereign rights over ninety-eight square miles on the Island of Cyprus, which extends to bases at Akrotiri, Episkopi, Dhekelia, and Ayos Nikolaos. These bases are treated as British sovereign territory.3‘Integrated Global Defence Network’, Gov.UK, 2 September 2025. Akrotiri is the United Kingdom’s primary airbase for operations in the Middle East. In recent years, it has been used by British warplanes for operations against Islamic State in Syria and Iraq, as well as for strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen.4J. Lawless and M. Hadjicostis, ‘Britain says it’s not at war after a drone strikes its Akrotiri base in Cyprus’, Associated Press, 2 March 2026.

On 20 March, Iran launched two intermediate-range ballistic missiles directed at the joint US-UK Diego Garcia military base in the Indian Ocean. The first missile malfunctioned during flight, while the second failed to reach its target after being intercepted by a US warship.5C. Kasapoğlu, ‘Iran’s Attempted Strike on Diego Garcia and the Emerging Strategic Threat’, Hudson Institute, 24 March 2026; ‘Iran targeted but did not hit Diego Garcia base with missiles, WSJ reports’, Reuters, 21 March 2026; S. Holliday and A. Dowell, ‘Iran Targeted Diego Garcia Base with Ballistic Missiles’, Iran Watch, 20 March 2026. Diego Garcia was thus not hit.

An IAC was triggered between Iran and the United Kingdom at the same time as the armed aerial drone entered into Cyprus airspace and triggered an IAC between Iran and Cyprus (see above).

As set out above, for an IAC to end there needs to be a degree of stability and permanence in the closure of military operations. Even though there has been no confirmed impactful attack by Iran on the United Kingdom since 2 March, its attempt to strike Diego Garcia on 20 March indicates that a risk of resumption cannot be ruled out. The IAC between Iran and the United Kingdom was thus ongoing at the end of the reporting period.