RAF fighter jets carried out military action to defend Jordan and Bahrain overnight as fighting intensifies in the Middle East.
The jets intercepted a drone heading towards Bahrain and took out an uncrewed aerial system to defend Jordan, the Ministry of Defence said.
Defence secretary John Healey confirmed the military action and said fragments of a drone that struck the UK base at Akrotiri, Cyprus, were being examined for “foreign military equipment”.
He also said the destroyer HMS Dragon would set sail for the eastern Mediterranean “in the next couple of days”, where it would join US air defence vessels.
An update on UK operations in the Middle East, 09 March 2026. pic.twitter.com/dXbvxEn1iT
— Ministry of Defence 🇬🇧 (@DefenceHQ) March 9, 2026
Mr Healey has urged for de-escalation in Lebanon and “a return to a negotiated process”.
He said: “We are deeply concerned about escalation in Lebanon. Hezbollah is a dangerous terror organisation tied to the regime in Iran.
“It must cease these attacks against Israel, but we do not want to see Israel expand this conflict further into Lebanon.
“More than 400 have already been killed and half a million displaced by recent Israeli operations.
“The solution to these problems, to this conflict, must be guided by the Lebanese people and the Lebanese government, and we urge de-escalation and a return to a negotiated process.”
His warning comes as prime minister Sir Keir Starmer said the longer the war in the Middle East continues, the more likely it is there will be economic damage in the UK. Rachel Reeves has also said the conflict is “likely to put upward pressure on inflation” over the coming months.
Fighting in the Middle East continued to intensify as the war between the US, Israel and Iran entered its tenth day.
Iran confirmed Mojtaba Khamenei would be taking over from his slain father as the supreme leader of Iran after President Donald Trump warned against an appointment without his approval.
Israeli strikes against Hezbollah hammered down on southern Lebanon as the UN’s Refugee Agency warned more than 500,000 civilians had been displaced.
Human Rights Watch accused Israel of using widely-banned white phosphorus over civilian homes in Lebanon. The white-hot substance can burn flesh down to the bone and set buildings on fire. At least 400 people have been killed in the fighting and more than 1,000 were injured.
Qatar continued to intercept weapons in its airspace, shooting down 17 ballistic missiles and six drones launched from the direction of Iran on Monday.
The war edged towards the Mediterranean as a second Iranian ballistic missile was shot down in Nato airspace by air defence systems in Turkey. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said his priority would be to keep his country out of the war.
Earlier in the day, Iran had denied launching any missiles in the direction of either Turkey or Azerbaijan.
French president Emmanuel Macron sent assistance in the form of warships to the Red Sea in what appeared to be an attempt to lift Iran’s siege of the Strait of Hormuz, which has triggered fears of a global economic collapse as oil prices surged to over $100 a barrel.
Iran’s security chief Ali Larijani said that it was “unlikely” the effort would work as he reiterated that the US and Israel had started the war.
A seventh killed US service member was named by America’s Department of War. Benjamin Pennington, 26, died of injuries sustained during an attack last Sunday at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia.
Israel promised a new wave of “wide-scale” attacks on Tehran, Isfahan and southern Iran.
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