UK to start reconnaissance flights over Gaza to search for captives
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The United Kingdom says the flights' mission will be to locate sites of captives held by the Palestinian Resistance in Gaza.
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The British Shadow R1s intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance aircraft in an undisclosed location in the United Kingdom in 2010. (Social media)
The United Kingdom announced it will start conducting surveillance flights over Gaza, occupied Palestine ("Israel") and the Eastern Mediterranean, claiming that operations aim to locate sites of captives held by the Palestinian Resistance, the country's Defense Ministry said on Sunday.
A range of different types of unarmed aircraft will be deployed for the mission, including Shadow R1s, which are primarily used to collect intelligence, defense officials said, adding that information will be relayed to the Israeli occupation authorities.
“The safety of British nationals is our utmost priority,” the statement read.
Read more: Report details how every Israeli kill in Gaza was planned, intentional
Britain confirmed that five UK citizens went missing after the Palestinian Resistance's operation on October 7, some of whom it suggests are being held captives in Gaza by the Resistance, but without confirming how many so far.
“Surveillance aircraft will be unarmed, do not have a combat role, and will be tasked solely to locate hostages. Only information relating to hostage rescue will be passed to the relevant authorities responsible for hostage [captive] rescue,” the ministry claimed.
Directly following the start of the Israeli aggression on Gaza, the United States announced deploying warships and more troops to support "Israel", and that it began flying drones over the besieged Strip to support efforts in finding the captivies.
"The US is conducting unarmed UAV flights over Gaza, as well as providing advice and assistance to support our Israeli partner as they work on their hostage recovery efforts," Pentagon spokesperson Brigadier General Pat Ryder said last month.
The announcment, while it was made after American-made MQ-9 Reaper drones were spotted over Gaza through flight-tracking websites, marked the first time US drones publicly flew over the Strip.
Read more: 'Israel' kills 60 Palestinians hours after the truce expired
Even though MQ-9 Reapers are multi-purpose drones with the ability to carry out airstrikes and conduct spy missions, US officials claimed that the UAVs are “not supporting Israeli military operations on the ground” and are intended to “monitor for signs of life and pass potential leads to the Israel Defense Forces.”
One week after October 7, the UK government announced that it has increased its military presence in the Middle East by deploying two Royal Navy ships, spy hardware and an additional 1,000 personnel and “to support Israel, reinforce regional stability and prevent escalation”.
On Thursday, the government further announced that it will also be deploying Type 45 destroyer HMS Diamond.
