Iran launched two ballistic missiles toward Diego Garcia, the joint UK-U.S. military base in the Indian Ocean, on Friday morning. Neither missile hit the base, with one failing mid-flight while the other was intercepted or diverted at sea by a U.S. warship using a naval missile-defense system.

Despite the failed strike, Iran’s launch at the base approximately 4,000 kilometers (2,500 miles) away, suggests that it has missiles that can reach Western Europe, a fact that it has denied until now.

A UK source confirmed the strikes on Saturday, adding that the attack occurred before the British government announced on Friday that it had given the green light to the US to use some of its bases to strike Iranian targets that are attacking ships in the Strait of Hormuz. The UK previously approved the use of its base for US bombers to attack Iran’s missile sites, following criticism by US President Donald Trump over London’s reluctance to take a more active role.

UK broadcaster Piers Morgan warned that Iran may have concealed the true range of its missiles, claiming the UK currently has “zero—literally zero—defense” against such threats.

At the same time, Iran’s foreign minister warned that the use of British bases to target the Islamic Republic could endanger UK civilians, saying that Iran would exercise its right to “self-defense.”

IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir spoke on Motzei Shabbos, warning Europe that its capitals are within the Iranian range while addressing the latest developments in the war against Iran.

“Iran launched a two-stage intercontinental ballistic missile with a range of 4,000 kilometers toward a US target on Diego Garcia Island,” Zamir said. “These missiles are not intended to strike Israel. Their range reaches European capitals—Berlin, Paris, and Rome are all within direct threat range.”

“We have learned from world and Jewish history that denying a threat or appeasing it does not make it disappear—on the contrary, it projects weakness and encourages extremist regimes. Whoever fails to confront a threat at its outset will, in time, become hostage to it. The possession of lethal strategic capabilities by radical, dictatorial regimes poses a danger not only to Israel but also to the world,” he concluded.

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)