Former Defence Secretary Ben Wallace has urged the British government to stand up to Iran and said Israel and the West need to “hit back twice as hard.”
Mr. Wallace, a former army officer who resigned from the Cabinet in August last year and is stepping down as an MP at the general election, warned that Tehran sees Britain as being “weak.”
Iran and its allies, including Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen, have supported Hamas in its conflict with Israel and on April 1, Israel punished Tehran by mounting an air strike on the Iranian consulate in Damascus, which killed a senior Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) officer.
On Saturday Iran fired 350 missiles and drones towards targets in Israel but the vast majority were shot down and the only casualty reported was a young girl who was injured.
U.S. President Joe Biden has reportedly told Israel not to escalate the conflict, but Mr. Wallace said Iran was acting like a “bully” and needed to be taught a lesson.
“The only option when Iran and Russia hit, I have concluded, is to hit back twice as hard and not stop until they get the message,” he added.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak confirmed on Monday that RAF fighter pilots, who had been redeployed from a base in NATO ally Romania, took part in the operation to shoot down Iranian drones heading towards Israel.
Sunak Urges Israel and Iran to ‘Show Restraint’
He also urged both Israel and Iran to “show restraint.”But Mr. Wallace said Britain and the United States should help to defend Israel and then use it as leverage to secure Israeli support for the conflict in Ukraine.
He said: “We stand by Israel because we share common values, oppose terrorism and respect sovereignty. But if pilots of the RAF are to help protect Israel, then we should expect Israel to help Ukraine with lethal weapons and other assets, because alliances work both ways.”
Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 there have been growing signs that a new Cold War is emerging with Russia, China, and Iran on one side and Britain, the United States, and NATO on the other and Mr. Wallace said Israel was naturally allied to the West.
Netanyahu Thanks Britain for ‘Support’
Mr. Netanyahu wrote on social media platform X that he “deeply appreciates the support of the United States, Britain, France and others in thwarting the Iranian attack against Israel.”He said: “Directly and through its terror proxies Hamas and others, Iran is conducting a full-scale campaign of aggression that threatens not only Israel but the entire Middle East.
“The international community must continue to stand united in resisting this Iranian aggression, which threatens world peace.”
Mr. Sunak has come under renewed pressure to proscribe the IRGC as a terrorist organisation in the wake of Saturday’s attacks on Israel.
But Home Office minister Laura Farris said while she supported the idea in principle, it would make it hard for Britain to create a back channel with Iran to deescalate tensions in the Middle East.
Ms. Farris told LBC: “We’re not for a second defending the IRGC. We’re simply saying that maintaining that channel with Tehran at this moment in time is, at present, in our national interest.”
