Starmer to chair Cobra meeting amid confusion over advice to Britons in Israel

Sir Keir Starmer will chair a meeting of the emergency Cobra committee to discuss the security situation in the Middle East.

The high-level meeting follows the Prime Minister’s return from the G7 summit in Canada at which he and other world leaders reiterated their “commitment to peace and stability” but stopped short of calling for a truce between Israel and Iran.

But reports have also suggested US President Donald Trump is considering joining Israeli action against Iran after he left the G7 summit a day early to meet with military chiefs.

Wednesday’s Cobra meeting comes amid confusion over whether British nationals should remain in Israel after the Foreign Office withdrew family members of embassy staff from the country.

The Foreign Office said the withdrawal was temporary and a “precautionary measure”, with staff remaining at both the embassy in Tel Aviv and the consulate in Jerusalem.

A spokesperson for the Foreign Office said: “Our embassy in Tel Aviv and consulate in Jerusalem remain fully staffed and continue to provide consular services to those who require assistance.”

But Downing Street would not say whether British nationals should attempt to leave the country.

Asked whether British nationals should leave Israel, a Number 10 spokesman would only say that the Government’s “key message” was to “follow the advice of local authorities on staying close to shelter”.

Britons have already been advised against all travel to Israel, and those already in the country have been urged to register their presence with the embassy.

The Number 10 spokesman added: “This is a fast-moving situation. We are keeping all our advice under constant review and the FCDO (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) continues to plan for a variety of developments as you would expect.”

The decision to withdraw family members of embassy staff comes as Israel’s air campaign against Iran entered its sixth day, with jets striking the Iranian capital Tehran overnight.

Israeli military chiefs said the air strikes targeted a facility used to make uranium centrifuges, part of Iran’s nuclear programme, and a factory building missile components.

Tehran has accused Tel Aviv of attacking civilians, while US-based group Human Rights Activists said on Wednesday that Israeli bombardment had killed 585 people in Iran, including 239 civilians.

In response, Iran has fired some 400 missiles and hundreds of drones at Israel, killing at least 24 people.

But its response appeared to diminish on Tuesday night, with only 10 missiles intercepted by Israel’s Iron Dome.

Meanwhile, Mr Trump is reported to be considering whether to deploy American forces in support of Israel’s operations against Iran.

Mr Trump met with top military advisers on Tuesday night to discuss the situation, shortly after a series of social media posts in which he described Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as an “easy target”.

He later posted the words “UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER”, prompting Mr Khamenei to warn that any American military involvement would result in “irreparable damage” to the US.

The posts followed Mr Trump’s decision to leave the G7 conference in Canada a day early to deal with what he called “big stuff”, triggering speculation that American forces might join Israeli strikes.

Earlier, Sir Keir Starmer had insisted Mr Trump was interested in de-escalation in the Middle East, saying “nothing” he had heard from the president suggested Washington was poised to get involved.

Asked whether the Prime Minister was still confident that Mr Trump would not involve US forces in the conflict, a Number 10 spokesman said the UK’s position was still that “we want to de-escalate rather than escalate”.

Published: 18/06/2025 by Radio NewsHub