Britain will move troops to Cyprus to help its nationals leave Lebanon, as Prime Minister Keir Starmer warned that the escalation in fighting between Israel and Hezbollah was pushing the region towards the brink.

The government said in a statement late on Tuesday (September 24) that 700 troops would travel to Cyprus, bolstering its presence in the area where it already has two Royal Navy ships, aircraft and transport helicopters.

The British government has advised all its citizens currently in Lebanon to leave immediately.

Fierce fighting this week between Israel and the Iran-backed Lebanese Hezbollah has increased fears that nearly a year of conflict will explode and destabilise the Middle East, where a war between Hamas and Israel is already raging in Gaza.

(Reuters)