RAF gunners in Middle East down multiple Iranian drones in overnight attacks

RAF Regiment gunners downed multiple attack drones while operating in a high-threat area, part of a pattern of nightly engagements that has continued since fighting broke out in late February. No UK personnel were hurt.

Typhoon and F-35 jets, along with Wildcat helicopters, flew defensive missions across the region through the night.

It comes after Donald Trump gave his first primetime address since the US and Israel launched the war on 28 February.

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Speaking from the White House on Wednesday night, Trump claimed the US had destroyed Iran's navy, air force and ballistic missile programme, and said the conflict was "nearing completion".

But he offered no timeline for ending it and vowed to hit Iran "extremely hard" for another two to three weeks.

He sidestepped the question of the Strait of Hormuz, saying it would open "naturally" once the war ended and that allies who depend on Gulf oil should take the lead in keeping it open.

Next week, the UK's Permanent Joint Headquarters will host defence planners from around 30 countries to work out how to get the strait open and safe for shipping.

French President Emmanuel Macron, who has been among Europe's most vocal critics of Trump's approach, called any military push to force it open "unrealistic," saying a ceasefire had to come first.

Mr Macron added that Trump should stop "saying the opposite every day of what he said the day before."