Defence minister flies to Cyprus to ease tension over drone strike on RAF base

Defence minister flies to Cyprus to ease tension over drone strike on RAF base John Healey meets Cypriot counterpart after Shahed-style drone evaded defences and hit RAF base on island US-Israel war on Iran – live updates John Healey flew into Cyprus on Wednesday night to calm the diplomatic fallout over a drone that evaded detection and hit an RAF base, prompting fury from local ministers. UK officials believe a drone that hit an RAF base in Cyprus evaded detection by flying low and slow when it was launched by pro-Iranian militia in Lebanon or western Iraq. But an investigation has been unable to establish conclusively where the Shahed-type drone was launched from. The attack occurred during the Iranian retaliatory bombardment over the weekend after the US and Israel launched a wave of strikes on Iran, killing the country’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The defence secretary’s visit comes amid a backlash in Cyprus over the drone attack on RAF Akrotiri, which has led to the evacuation of families living on the bases and a bolstering of its defences. The attack on Sunday, and the two others intercepted later on Monday morning, are likely to have been launched by the Shia militia group Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran. The drone, a cheaply made Iranian design, is used as a one-way attack vehicle. Though there were no injuries and damage was limited, the attack and the failure to stop the drone hitting the base has prompted anger from the Cypriot government. The Cypriot defence minister met Healey on Wednesday morning in Nicosia. The drone strike was the first against a British military installation at the bases on the island in 40 years. Keir Starmer, the prime minister, has said the drone was launched before the UK announced on Sunday evening that it would allow the US to use two of its bases for defensive action against Iran. No RAF bases on Cyprus are being used by US bombers. The Cypriot high commissioner in the UK, Kyriacos Kouros, said the country w...