A repatriation flight from Oman carrying Britons left stranded in the Middle East has been delayed, as Sir Keir Starmer continues to defend his relationship with Donald Trump.
The first government rescue flight and British Airways commercial flight from Muscat were expected to land in the UK early on Thursday.
But a technical issue at the airport in Oman prevented the first chartered plane from taking off as planned.
It is now expected to take off later on Thursday, with the conflict between the US, Israel and Iran now entering its sixth day.
Meanwhile, Sir Keir’s government has continued to defend the status of the special relationship with the US after a series of attacks from Trump over his handling of the crisis.
Sir Keir has told MPs the special relationship with Washington will endure after the US president lashed out at his initial refusal to allow British bases to be used for raids against Iran.
After Mr Trump said the prime minister was “not Winston Churchill”, Sir Keir said the bond with the US was not about “hanging on to president Trump’s latest words”.
