Middle East crisis LIVE: Israel vows ‘stronger response’ after shooting down Iranian drones and missiles

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has confirmed RAF pilots shot down “a number” of attack drones.

Speaking from Downing Street, Rishi Sunak said: “I want to pay tribute to the bravery of our pilots.”

He said lives were saved “not just in Israel, but in neighbouring countries such as Jordan as well”.

“I can confirm that our pilots did shoot down a number of Iranian attack drones.”

He said Iran sent both missiles and attack drones and did not specify how many were shot down by RAF forces.

G7 leaders are to hold urgent talks after Iran launched an unprecedented attack on Israel that saw RAF jets deployed to shoot down drones from Tehran.

Rishi Sunak is expected to join US President Joe Biden on the call on Sunday amid fears of further escalation in the event of a possible Israeli counter-strike.

Tehran has threatened a “heavier” response if Washington co-operates with any further Israeli military action against it.

Israel said Iran launched 170 drones, more than 30 cruise missiles and more than 120 ballistic missiles early on Sunday in an attack that set off air raid sirens across the country.

German airline group Lufthansa said on Sunday it was suspending flights to Amman, Beirut, Erbil and Tel Aviv at least until Monday following the latest turmoil in the Middle East.

The group, which includes the German flagship carrier as well as Swiss and Austrian airlines, would also ensure its flights avoided the airspace above Israel, Jordan and Iraq for the foreseeable future, it said in a statement to Reuters.

The company had already said on Friday it was suspending flights to and from Tehran until April 18 and would not use Iranian airspace during that time.

Iran’s foreign ministry summoned on Sunday the ambassadors of the United Kingdom, France, and Germany to question what it referred to as their “irresponsible stance” regarding Tehran’s retaliatory strikes on Israel, the semi-official Iranian Labour News Agency reported.

Several Iranian airports including Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International have cancelled flights until Monday, Iranian state media reported on Sunday, as tensions flared in the Middle East with Iran’s attack on Israel overnight.

Iran launched dozens of drones and missiles at Israel through Saturday night into Sunday as a response to Israel’s bombing of its consulate in Syria on April 1, raising fears of a possible Israeli retaliation against Tehran.

“All flights from Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International Airport have been cancelled until 6am (0230 GMT) following an announcement by Iran’s Civil Aviation Organisation,” the airport’s executive told the Iranian Student News Agency

Jordan’s Prime Minister Bisher Khasawneh said on Sunday any escalation in the region would lead to “dangerous paths” and said that there was a need to reduce escalation by all parties.

In remarks to the cabinet, Khasawneh said the country’s armed forces would confront any attempt by any party that sought to endanger the kingdom’s security.

The staunch US ally’s air defences intercepted and downed dozens of Iranian drones and missiles that flew over the country’s airspace in the direction of Israeli targets, security sources said.

Israel’s war cabinet is due to meet at 3:30pm (1230 GMT) to discuss a response to the drone and missile attack launched by Iran overnight, an Israeli official said.

Russia said on Sunday it was extremely concerned by Iranian strikes on Israel and called on all parties to exercise restraint but said tensions would remain high until the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians was resolved.

“We express our extreme concern over another dangerous escalation in the region,” Russia’s foreign ministry said in a statement on the Iranian attacks. “We call on all parties involved to exercise restraint.”

Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said on Sunday that a war between Israel and Iran would worsen Joe Biden’s prospects of being re-elected U.S. president.

“America does not want a big war in the Middle East,” Medvedev said on Telegram.

“The killings in Gaza worsen Biden’s prospects in the elections, and war between Israel and Iran would introduce additional uncertainty.”

Labour has backed the UK Government action taken overnight to help protect Israel.

Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper told the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme: “Let’s be clear, we support the existing Government missions in the Middle East and continue to do so.

“That is important. We also think that it is important that action was taken overnight to prevent the Iranian strikes on Israel because we should be clear that if action hadn’t been taken to prevent those strikes, we would have seen further escalation and further risk of widening conflict.”