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  6.  » British forces involved in defending Israel from Iranian attack, says Healey

Matthew Weaver – The Guardian Oct 2, 2024

British forces were involved in thwarting Iran’s missile attack against Israel, the UK’s defence secretary has suggested.

In a carefully worded statement on Tuesday night, John Healey said: “British forces have this evening played their part in attempts to prevent further escalation in the Middle East.”

The statement did not go into military details on how British forces may have helped combat the barrage of 180 ballistic missiles launched by Iran in an attack that caused limited damage.

US defence officials confirmed that US destroyers in the eastern Mediterranean Sea took down multiple missiles launched by Iran. And, following a similar attack by Iran on Israel in April, it was later confirmed that RAF Typhoons, from the Akrotiri airbase in Cyprus, had shot down Iranian drones.

Healey is visiting Cyprus to meet troops who are preparing for the possibility of evacuating British citizens from Lebanon


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The prime minister, Keir Starmer, said on Tuesday night he was “deeply concerned that the region is on the brink”, and again urged British nationals in Lebanon to leave amid escalating violence in the Middle East.

In a televised statement from Downing Street, Starmer said Iran had “menaced the Middle East for far too long” and called on the country to “stop these attacks”.

“We stand with Israel and we recognise her right to self-defence in the face of this aggression,” he said.

 

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