The United Kingdom has announced plans to send surveillance aircraft and two Royal Navy ships to the eastern Mediterranean to “support Israel.” Starting tomorrow, the aircraft will begin patrols to “track threats to regional stability such as the transfer of weapons to terrorist groups.” The package includes surveillance assets, helicopters, P8 aircraft, and a company of Marines to deter further escalation.
Downing Street stated that the British armed forces would be on standby to “deliver practical support to Israel and partners in the region, and offer deterrence and assurance.” A Royal Navy task group will be moved to the region next week to support humanitarian efforts, and military teams in Israel, Cyprus, and across the region will be bolstered to support contingency planning. The UK’s military and diplomatic teams across the region will also support international partners to re-establish security and ensure humanitarian aid reaches the thousands of innocent victims of this barbaric attack from Hamas terrorists.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson acknowledged that the UK government “must be unequivocal” in making sure that the “horrific scenes” that have unfolded in Israel “will not be repeated.” Chancellor Rishi Sunak said the military support would “prevent further escalation,” and Defence Secretary Grant Shapps stated that the military aid “will be an undeniable display of the UK’s resolve to ensure Hamas’s terrorist campaign fails.”
Meanwhile, the Foreign Office has begun arranging flights for British nationals stranded in Israel, with the first plane scheduled to leave Tel Aviv on Thursday, subject to security. More flights are planned “in the coming days.” The UK’s move comes as the conflict in the region continues to escalate. Since Israel’s retaliatory airstrikes, more than 1,300 people have been killed in Gaza
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