Addressing the nation on Thursday (5 March), Starmer confirmed 4,000 British nationals have so far returned from the Middle East via commercial flights after the US and Israel launched strikes on Iran at the weekend, bringing war to the region when Iran retaliated.
Attacks have forced the closure of several countries' airspace, including the UAE and Qatar, although the UAE has opened up "safe air corridors" to facilitate a limited programme of flights out of the country, mainly to get transit passengers on their way.
