Sir Keir Starmer has refused to say whether he’s willing to risk the lives of British troops, as the UK ramps up evacuation efforts in Lebanon.
Amid warnings that the Israeli military is preparing for a possible ground invasion of its neighbour, Sir Keir was at pains to stress the importance that all British nationals get out of Lebanon immediately.
Speaking from New York, where he is attending the annual meeting of the United Nations General Assembly, the Prime Minister bluntly warned: “Leave now. It’s very important, the situation is escalating.
“I say to British nationals don’t wait, leave now. We are ramping up the contingency plans for an evacuation, as you would expect, but my message is don’t wait for that.”
The Express understands that there are between 4,000 and 6,000 British nationals and dependents still in Lebanon, at the latest count, down from a higher number during the summer.
British nationals have been told to get out of Lebanon immediately (Image: Getty)
Sir Keir said that commercial flights are still operating out of the country, and Britons in the region should make use of them while that is still the case.
Asked by the BBC whether he is willing to put British troops in danger as part of the evacuation effort, Sir Keir refused to rule out such a move.
Around 700 troops were moved to Cyprus overnight on Wednesday, with the Royal Air Force also placed on ‘standby’ to provide additional evacuation support if necessary, with aircraft and helicopters to transport Brits to safety.
Sir Keir dodged: “I’m not going to get into the details of evacuation plans. As you would expect, we put contingency measures in place.”
“Here in New York, in the UN General Assembly, I’m being very, very clear this is a dangerous situation now and all parties need to pull back from the brink, to de-escalate.
“We need a ceasefire and this needs to be sorted out by diplomatic means. Very, very clear messaging on that, very firm messaging on that along with key allies.
“But I am very concerned about the increasing escalation which is not just day on day, but almost hour on hour at the moment.”
Keir Starmer delivered his demand for de-escalation at the UN General Assembly (Image: Getty)
The Prime Minister’s spokesman similarly refused to comment on the risk to British troops.
Sir Keir’s blunt message came as the United Nations warned that 90,000 Lebanese have now been replaced by the conflict between Israel and the terrorist group Hezbollah in the past week alone.
The body’s International Organisation for Migration recorded “90,530 newly displaced persons”, with more than 111,000 displaced since October.
On Tuesday, Israel launched a new barrage strike against Lebanon, in a move that killed more than 500 people and injured 1,800 others.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said they were changing the “balance of power” on its northern front, and succeeded in taking out 1,600 Hezbollah assets.
The strikes also killed one of the terrorist group’s senior commanders, Ibrahim Qubaisi.
The move sparked a retaliatory attack from Lebanon, with Israel intercepting a missile fired towards Tel Aviv today, an unprecedented attack by Hezbollah.
Israeli troops appear to be preparing for a possibly ground invasion of Lebanon (Image: Getty)
The chief of the Israeli Army (IDF) has now said that they are preparing for a possible ground operation in Lebanon and activating reserve troops.
Addressing his troops on the country’s northern border, Chief of Staff Lt Gen Herzi Halevi said Israel’s airstrikes were designed to “prepare the ground for your possible entry and to continue degrading Hezbollah”.
The army said it was calling up “two reserve brigades for operational missions in the northern arena”.
“This will enable the continuation of combat against the Hezbollah terrorist organisation,”
Speaking to Channel 4 in New York, Sir Keir said that Mr Netenyahu will “have his own objectives” when asked if the Israeli premier has “any idea where this ends”.
Asked if he could back a request from the International Criminal Court to support an arrest warrant for Mr Netanyahu, Sir Keir refused to speculate ahead of the court’s decision.
He added: “Look, no decisions being made. It’s a matter, obviously, for the court. So I’m not going to get ahead of that to speculate. The court will take its decision in due course.”
Sir Keir made his United Nations debut yesterday afternoon, using a speech at the UN Security Council to demand an end to conflicts in Lebanon, Gaza, Ukraine and Sudan.
He warned that the West is “falling short” on delivering humanitarian support to war-torn countries, and called for an immediate ceasefire between Israel and the Lebanese Hizballah to bring the region away from the brink.
The Prime Minister said there also needs to be the implementation of a political plan which allows citizens in both countries to return to their homes and live in peace and security.
He added: “That security will come through diplomacy – not escalation. There is no military solution here. Nor is there a military-only solution to the conflict in Gaza.”
Sir Keir also highlighted the war in Sudan, which he labelled “the worst humanitarian crisis in the world today and the worst displacement crisis, with over 10 million people driven from their homes.”
He confirmed that the UK has doubled its aid for victims of the war to almost £100million, but warned “much more help is needed. The world must step up”.
