UK says Iran nearly hit British troops, won't rule out participation in strikes
Hundreds of British troops were just 200 metres away from an Iranian missile attack in Bahrain, it has emerged.
Defence Secretary John Healey told the BBC on Sunday morning that UK military personnel and civilians were "at risk with a regime that is increasingly indiscriminate, widespread and uncontrolled in the attacks it is mounting".
The UK is not involved in the US-Israeli attacks on Iran that began on Saturday, but Healey declined to rule out British involvement in future strikes.
"Yesterday, we had 300 personnel on that Bahrain base that was attacked by Iranian missiles and drones, some of them within a few hundred yards of where they landed," he said.
“We had two missiles fired in the direction of Cyprus."
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The British base in Cyprus, RAF Akrotiri, was used to launch surveillance flights over Gaza during Israel's genocide in the Palestinian enclave.
“We don’t believe they were targeted at Cyprus," Healey clarified, "but nevertheless, it’s an example of how there is a very real and rising threat from a regime that is lashing out widely across the region, and that requires us to act.”
He said missiles have not directly targeted British bases but labelled Iran a "very real and rising threat", adding Iranian missile commanders were "increasingly allowed to choose their own targets".
'Starmer must rule out UK involvement'
RAF Typhoons are understood to be participating in regional defence operations against Iranian strikes.
The UK reportedly shot down a missile heading towards a base housing its service personnel in Iraq on Saturday.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Saturday that British forces aimed "to protect our people, our interests, and our allies - as Britain has done before, in line with international law".
Green Party leader Zack Polanski told the BBC on Sunday morning he was worried the UK would be dragged into an "illegal war".
"Really concerned to hear the defence secretary refuse to rule out UK's involvement in future strikes on Iran," Polanski said.
"Iraq lessons must be learned. Further escalation in the Middle East makes us all less safe.
"Starmer must rule out UK involvement immediately."
Reform UK and the Conservative Party have called for Britain to allow the US to use British bases for attacks on Iran.
Most significant to the conflict is the joint UK-US military base on Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean Chagos Archipelago. The base places US bomber aircraft within 5,300km of Iran, but the UK reportedly blocked the US from using it to attack Iran.
Iran's Shahed-136 kamikaze drones have the range to attack Diego Garcia, which houses around 4,000 people, mostly US military personnel and contractors.
The UK also has airbases in Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Cyprus.
If Iran attacks a British base, the Labour government would likely come under enormous domestic pressure from opposition parties to join in with strikes on Iran.
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