British forces are responding to a suspected drone strike at its military base in Cyprus, the defence ministry said Monday, with no casualties reported.

The strike hit the RAF Akrotiri base at midnight, said the ministry, adding that its forces were handling a “live situation”.

“Our force protection in the region is at the highest level and the base has responded to defend our people,” a Ministry of Defence spokesperson said in a statement.

The incident came as Britain agreed on Sunday to allow the United States to use British military bases to fire “defensive” strikes aimed at destroying Iranian missiles and their launchers.

The Royal Air Force Akrotiri base is a British overseas territory near the southern coastal city of Limassol.

London recently deployed additional assets to the site as “defensive measures”, including air and drone defence systems, radars, and F-35 aircraft.

While announcing that British bases can be used by US forces for defensive strikes, Prime Minister Keir Starmer stressed that Britain was “not involved in the initial strikes on Iran and we will not join offensive action now”.

“But Iran is pursuing a scorched-earth strategy, so we are supporting the collective self-defence of our allies and our people in the region,” he said in a post on X.

Opinion

Editorial

Dire straits
Updated 14 Jul, 2026

Dire straits

FOR some time, the escalating confrontation between the US and Iran has been playing out round the strategically...
Ethnic targets
Updated 14 Jul, 2026

Ethnic targets

THE murder of five workers from Punjab in Mashkel is another grim reminder that ethnic violence remains a persistent...
Poverty punished
14 Jul, 2026

Poverty punished

THE challenge of illegal migrations should be viewed through a humanitarian lens. Harsh punishments for the poor...
Banking inertia
Updated 13 Jul, 2026

Banking inertia

PRIME Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s latest call to banks to expand lending to SMEs is nothing new. Every government...
Justice imperilled
13 Jul, 2026

Justice imperilled

THE Human Rights Commission of Pakistan and the International Federation for Human Rights have raised concerns about...
Toxic staple
13 Jul, 2026

Toxic staple

A RECENT article published in Dawn has shed light on the challenges being faced by Sindh’s chilli farmers, whose...