Defence Secretary Healey to chair Cobra meeting on Israel-Lebanon fighting

Defence Secretary John Healey has left the Labour Conference early in order to chair an emergency meeting on the growing crisis in the Middle East, according to Sky News.

The move comes after Israeli Defence Force warplanes bombed multiple targets in Lebanon amid growing fighting with the Iran-backed Lebanese armed group Hezbollah. Healey will chair a meeting of the Cabinet Office Briefing Room, or Cobra, which co-ordinates British government responses to major crises, Sky’s Tamara Cohen first reported. 

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Israeli warplanes today attacked targets in Lebanon for the second day running, with military spokesmen saying they had bombed 1,600 targets linked to Hezbollah. Lebanese health minister Firass Abiad said that the Israeli airstrikes had killed 558 people including 50 children.  Hezbollah has continued to fire rockets at northern Israel. 

The armed group has said it is targeting military bases, while Israeli spokesmen have said civilian dwellings have been hit. Media outlets have not been able to independently confirm any of the statements made about casualties inflicted or targets hit. 

LabourList has spoken to former Royal Air Force officers who believe that in some contingencies, British troops might be ordered to evacuate UK nationals from Lebanon. Any such operation would be a major undertaking and would have to be carried out with allied countries, especially the United States, these sources said. 

The Foreign Office (FCDO) warned all UK nationals in Lebanon to “leave now” on September 20, repeating that warning today. Its advice stresses: “Do not rely on FCDO being able to evacuate you in an emergency”. 

The US government has also advised its citizens in Lebanon to leave the country. 

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