Base hosting UK troops in Iraq hit by Iranian drones

A base in Iraq used by British troops has come under attack from Iranian drones, wounding a number of American soldiers. 

British air-defence troops destroyed two drones, but other devices evaded defences and struck an air base in Erbil, northern Iraq, on Wednesday night, defence chiefs revealed on Thursday. 

It marks the third successful strike against British forces since war began nearly two weeks ago. 

An unknown number of one-way attack bombs eluded air defences at the base, lightly wounding US troops stationed there. 

Brigadier Guy Foden, assistant chief of staff for operations at Permanent Joint Headquarters (PJHQ), said: "Erbil and Baghdad were both struck a number of times last night with increasing coordination.

"We have personnel in Erbil who are currently helping with the defence of that base. Last night they shot down two UAVs [unmanned aerial vehicles] coming at the camp. But a number of UAVs did impact on the camp."

The same base was hit on 1 March, with British personnel stationed within 400m of the missile strike.  

A day later, a drone hit RAF Akrotiri, the UK's air base in Cyprus. It caused no casualties and "minimal damage", according to Cypriot authorities.  

British MP and Your Party leader Jeremy Corbyn told Middle East Eye: "In Iran, 1,300 people have already been killed and 9,000 have been injured. 570 people have been killed in Lebanon. Their lives matter too. 

"The government has dragged Britain into yet another illegal war. In doing so, it has made itself complicit in the untold suffering of human beings and jeopardised the safety of us all."

Corbyn added: "The sooner the government realises the severity of its mistake, the better. That means ending its complicity in this illegal war, and rescinding permission for the foreign use of British bases."

US bombers using British bases

The US is using British military bases for bombers en route to targeting Iranian missile sites.

Over the past week, numerous US B-1 Lancer bombers have taken off from the Royal Air Force (RAF) Fairford base in Gloucestershire in southern England to carry out strikes on Iran.

Three bombers touched down at RAF Fairford on Thursday, having returned from an American strike mission.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has resisted calls from opposition politicians for the RAF to join in with strikes on Iran but has not condemned the US-Israeli attack. 

Relations are also strained with the US over Britain’s initial refusal to allow the US to use the joint UK-US base on Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean to launch strikes on Iran.

Starmer held a phone call with US President Donald Trump on Sunday to discuss "the latest situation in the Middle East and the military cooperation between the UK and US through the use of RAF bases in support of the collective self-defence of partners in the region", according to Downing Street.

Trump had repeatedly attacked Starmer, calling him "unhelpful" and "no Winston Churchill", and accusing the prime minister of seeking to "join wars after we've already won".