Hostility in the Middle East has continued to escalate as Hezbollah fires 50 rockets at Israel. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed it had intercepted “most” of the rockets fired.
The Lebanese terror group said its attack came in response to Israel’s strikes on Kfarkela and Deir Siriane in Lebanon.
The latest spike in tensions comes after Israel was accused of killing Hamas’ political leader Ismail Haniyeh and Fuad Shukr, a senior Hezbollah commander, in the space of two days.
Hamas’ October 7 attack, in which 1,200 Israelis were killed, led to a brutal military response in Gaza, which has resulted in the death of nearly 40,000 people, according to the Hamas-led Health Ministry in the Strip.
Israel‘s Western allies, including the UK, have a number of bases in the Middle East that could be under threat if the region heads into a full-scale war.
The UK has a number of bases in the Middle East.
The Royal Air Force (RAF) has a facility in the United Arab Emirates known as Donnelly Lines.
The force also operates out of HMS Jufair, or the United Kingdom Naval Support Facility, in Bahrain.
The UK Joint Logistics Support Base is located in Oman. It is used to facilitate the deployment of the British Armed Forces in the Persian Gulf and Indian Ocean.
Britain also uses an Omani-British joint training area which doubles up as a Land Regional Hub for expeditionary warfare by the British Army.
In Qatar, the RAF is based at Al Udeid Air Base, used for air operations in the Middle East.
British Army personnel are also present in Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and other Gulf countries.
The Common Library adds: “Numbers of personnel in the region vary depending on operational requirements. The Ministry of Defence does not disclose the location or deployments of UK Special Forces.”
The British Armed Forces carries out much of its Middle East-related operations from Cyprus.
The armed forces have 3,370 personnel permanently stationed in Cyprus, of whom 2,150 are military.
RAF Akrotiri is the main operating base for aircraft in the region. It is a Permanent Joint Operating Base.