Charter flight carries Britons out of Lebanon as evacuation planning continues

Defence Secretary John Healey has met military personnel preparing for a potential evacuation of Britons from Lebanon with the Middle East teetering on the brink of wider war.

He has also thanked RAF personnel involved in the operation to protect Israel as it came under attack from a barrage of Iranian missiles.

Two Typhoon fighter jets, supported by a tanker aircraft, were involved in the operation although the Ministry of Defence said because of the nature of the attack, which involved ballistic missiles, “they did not engage any targets”.

The MoD said the aircraft “played an important part in wider deterrence and efforts to prevent further escalation”.

Meanwhile a charter plane carrying Britons from Lebanon left Beirut, with further flights planned for tomorrow and over the coming days.

A separate scheduled Middle East Airlines service also brought Britons back to the UK.

Foreign Secretary David Lammy said: “The first charter flight taking British nationals out of Lebanon has now departed. We have arranged another flight for tomorrow, and further flights over the coming days for as long as there is demand and it is safe to do so.”

But there are concerns in Whitehall that further military activity by Israel could result in the closure of the airport, cutting off the most straightforward exit route for the estimated 4-6,000 British nationals in Lebanon.

Hundreds of British troops have been deployed to Cyprus alongside RAF and Royal Navy assets in the region in preparation for a potential evacuation.

Mr Healey said: “They briefed me on the plans, they are ready to go if needed. I have every confidence in our ability to do the job if required.

“But for now our government advice to all Brits in Lebanon is get out now.”

He added that the importance of being able to get Britons out of Lebanon had been made clear to the Israeli government.

“It’s vital that we as nations, if we have to, are able to get our nationals out of Lebanon safely,” he said.

“Israel understand that, they understand that well, and we will continue to make that case.”

The Israeli military has warned people to evacuate around 50 villages and towns across southern Lebanon as its activities continue.

Israel has also promised to retaliate for the Iranian missile attack, something which could trigger a wider war in the region.

Mr Healey said he had spoken to his Israeli counterpart Yoav Galant to assure him the UK offered “steadfast” support but to say that “our big concern is to avoid this conflict spiralling into a wider regional war”.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, in Brussels for talks with European Union chiefs, said: “We do need to pull back from the brink and to encourage all parties to find a way to de-escalate and for a political solution to the very many fronts of the crisis in the Middle East.”

Israel said it intercepted many of the missiles fired by Iran on Tuesday, while Tehran claimed most had hit their targets.