UK military on standby for potential evacuation of nationals

[Pelican Press 0]

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*** military on standby for potential evacuation of nationals

More than a thousand British military personnel have been put on standby in case British nationals need to be evacuated from Lebanon.

Preparations are being made in response to a Foreign Office warning that the situation in the Middle East could rapidly deteriorate.

On Saturday, the Foreign Office repeated a call for *** nationals to leave Lebanon – while confirming that preparations were underway to help with an evacuation of the country if necessary.

An estimated

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, Foreign Secretary David Lammy told the House of Commons last week.

Hundreds of troops have been sent to Cyprus, where the *** already has a military presence.

Meanwhile, in the ***, hundreds more troops have been put on notice – meaning they are ready to be deployed to the region if necessary.

The *** already has a significant military presence in Cyprus.

An RAF base at Akrotiri is likely to be a hub for any air movements, with RAF Typhoon fighter jets already stationed there.

Those jets were involved in defence against an Iranian drone and missile ******* on ******* in April.

The statement released by the Foreign Office at the weekend said military personnel were in the process of deploying to provide operational support to *** embassies in the region. It did not mention the number of troops involved.

A Royal Navy destroyer – HMS Duncan – and a landing ship – RFA Cardigan Bay – are already in the Eastern Mediterranean.

RAF helicopters have also been placed on standby.

Tensions have been growing across the Middle East since the ****** attacks on southern ******* on 7 October.

About 1,200 people were ******* in the *******, triggering a massive ******** military response in Gaza.

At least 39,480 Palestinians have been ******* since, according to Gaza’s ******-run health ministry.

Hostilities between ******* and its neighbours have escalated following the ****** of ****** political chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran last Wednesday – an ******* Iran has blamed on *******.

Haniyeh’s ************** came hours after ******* ******* Hezbollah senior commander Fuad Shukr in Beirut.

In response, Iran has vowed “severe” retaliation against *******.

Western officials ***** that Hezbollah, an Iran-backed militia and political movement based in Lebanon, could play a key role in any such retaliation, which in turn could spark a serious ******** response.

The US, the ***, Australia, France, Canada, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Japan, Turkey and Jordan are among the countries to have urged their citizens to leave Lebanon as soon as possible.

Last year, the British government helped co-ordinate the evacuation of British nationals from Gaza, with some 200 *** citizens thought to be living in the territory before the war broke out.

In 2021, over 15,000 people were evacuated from Afghanistan to the *** after the country fell to the Taliban.

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