British forces in Iraq have been placed on high alert over rising tension between the US and Iran, defence sources told The Independent.
The decision to raise the threat level was taken by Centcom (US Central Command) which is in overall charge of allied forces in Operation Inherent Resolve and was based, according to the Pentagon, on intelligence reports.
A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: “There is a range of threats to UK and coalition forces in this part of the world: that is why we have a very robust range of force protection measures.
“The UK has long been clear about our concerns over Iran’s destabilising behaviour in the region.”
The decision to raise the threat level for Inherent Resolve troops was taken before Major General Chris Ghika, the British deputy commander of international forces in Iraq, said in a Pentagon video conference that although persistent threats remained from Iran, there were no fresh ones.
US officials disputed Maj Gen Ghika’s views, with a Pentagon spokesman saying: “The general’s remarks run counter to the identified credible threats. As a result, [the coalition] is now at a high level of alert as we continue to closely monitor credible and possibly imminent threats to US forces in Iraq.”
The UK, unlike the US, will not be evacuating its embassy in Baghdad and the consulate in Iraqi Kurdistan will remain open.
