According to a report in Al Jazeera, Iran's ministry of foreign Affairs spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said that the accusations reflected a pattern of "disinformation".

"That even the Nato Secretary General (who is infamously pressing Alliance members to appease the US and support their illegal war on Iran) declines to endorse Israel's most recent disinformation, speaks volumes: the world has grown thoroughly exhausted with these tired and discredited 'false flag' storylines," Baghaei wrote on X.

The denial came after Rutte (Nato secretary general) said that the alliance 'cannot confirm' Israel's claim that missiles targeting Diego Garcia were Iranian intercontinental ballistic missiles.

Earlier, there were reports that Iran had launched intermediate-range ballistic missiles on the island hosting UK's military base.

The reported incident had drawn attention because Diego Garcia is at a distance of 4,000 kilometers (2.485 miles) from Iran. Defence experts have long questioned Iran's military capabilities to strike at such a distance.

Diego Garcia: A strategic asset

The island, the largest in the Chagos Archipelago in the central Indian Ocean, has hosted a joint US-UK military presence since the 1970s and serves as a base for long-range bombers and other strategic assets.

The UK, which owned the island, granted the US a 50-year lease in 1966 for a major military facility. It was extended in 2016 for another 20 years. This extension was set to expire in 2036 before a 2025 sovereignty agreement with Mauritius was finalised.

Numerous air operations were launched from Diego Garcia during the Persian Gulf War in 1990-91, US-led strikes on Afghanistan in 2001, and in the Iraq War of 2003.

After the Iranian Revolution in 1979, the US lauched one of the biggest military expansion on Diego Garcia. The harbour was deepened to accommodate aircraft carriers: a 12,000-foot runway was built for B-1, B-2, and B-52 bombers; and massive pre-positioned ships, each roughly 1000 m, were loaded with enough weapons and supplies for an entire Marine brigade. Other advanced weaponry is also housed on the island, according to a report by The Indian Express.