UK prepares for mass evacuation of 60,000 Britons amid fears of attack on Israel
Britain is said to be putting proposals forward to evacuate UK nationals from Israel amid concerns Iran might launch an attack
Reuters
Britain is said to be putting proposals forward to evacuate UK nationals from Israel amid concerns Iran might launch an attack.
It comes as a possible Iranian strike on Israel is impending after Iran accused it of assassinating Hamas commander Ismail Haniyeh last month.
The British Foreign Office is preparing for emergency plans to support around 60,000 Britons believed to be in the country.
Last week it was believed that the Royal Navy and Marines were planning a "Dunkirk-style" mission to rescue 16,000 British nationals from Lebanon as tensions increased.
Britain is said to be putting proposals forward to evacuate UK nationals from Israel amid concerns Iran might launch an attackReutersA Government spokesman said: "While we continue to use all diplomatic levers to push for de-escalation, our staff are working around the clock to plan for all scenarios to keep British nationals safe.
"Our travel advice is constantly updated to reflect the latest guidance."
The plans would see Typhoon fighter jets flying from RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus to offer "top cover" for stranded Britons in Israel.
It would mean Border Force (UKBF) officials will be embedded in military teams operating in the Middle East.
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In June, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said "intense" fighting in Gaza was ending but since the deaths of Haniyeh and a Hezbollah leader, further heavy conflict is anticipated.
Hezbollah has engaged with some border battles with Israel but there has so far been no wider war.
Masoud Pezeshkian, the Iranian President, has insisted his country has the "right to respond" to the attack on Iranian land.
"No one has the right to doubt Iran's legal right to punish the Zionist regime," foreign ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanani said.
Thousands of mourners turned out in the streets of Tabriz, Iran following the death of Hamas commander Ismail Haniyeh
ReutersEdmund Fitton-Brown, Senior Advisor to the Counter Extremism Project and former Ambassador of the UK to Yemen said "it could all very easily spiral out of control".
"In essence, I think Iran and Israel would both prefer to avoid escalation out of control," he told the MailOnline.
"But Iran (and Hezbollah) both want to be seen to respond to the Israeli assassinations.
"Calibrating such responses in such a way as to save face and yet avoid escalation gets more difficult with each successive round of skirmishing."