This morning’s broadcast headlines and newspapers are dominated by the Prime Minister’s announcement yesterday afternoon that two British ISIL jihadists, Reyaad Khan and Ruhul Amin, who died in Syria, were killed by an RAF ‘drone’ strike.
SYRIA AIR STRIKE
Many outlets lead with questions surrounding the legality of the action, and the Defence Secretary discussed this and other issues during a round of interviews with broadcasters this morning.
Speaking to Radio 4’s Today Programme, Defence Secretary Michael Fallon said:
Action like this has to be necessary, it has to be proportionate, and it has to be based on the right of any country to defend itself against an armed attack that’s being planned against it.
These were terrorists who had been planning a series of attacks on the streets of our country, some involving public events. There are other terrorists making similar plans and we have to do what we can to keep our streets safe.
He added the Government would "not hesitate" to repeat the action if there was no other way to stop the terror cells from attacking the UK. Mr Fallon was also asked if there was a specific list of names the Government was targeting, and replied that while he could not go into details, there were large numbers of people planning attacks and that it was the job of the armed forces and intelligence services to stop them. On whether this marked a turning point regarding UK military action in Syria, Mr Fallon emphasised this was a specific response to a specific threat, and said the Prime Minister has made clear he would return to Parliament on wider military action in the country.
Much of the coverage in this morning’s newspapers is along similar lines with the Daily Express and Daily Telegraph leading with the angle that Rayeed Khan was directing a plot to kill the Queen. The Times reports that Britain has vowed to attack more ISIL fighters in Syria following the strike. The Guardian claims that David Cameron faces questions over Britain’s decision to follow the US model of drone strikes.
The issue features widely across the papers’ leaders and editorials. The Daily Telegraph says that David Cameronn was justified in ordering the Syria attack. The Daily Mail argues that the strike “was no tragedy”, while the Daily Express suggests that only great vigilance has kept us safe from attack. The Daily Mirror on the other hand says that the Prime Minister must give more evidence of the terrorist attacks he claims Khan was plotting and publish the legal advice used to justify this unprecedented strike - then everyone can decide.
Elsewhere, the Daily Mail reports that British forces could be deployed to Syria to help set up 'safe havens' for refugees. The article goes on to add that the Prime Minister - who has previously ruled out the idea - says that the creation of safe zones was certainly the right sort of thinking.
ROYAL NAVY SUBMARINE
The Times, Daily Mirror, Guardian and Sun all report the Ministry of Defence has admitted that a British submarine damaged a fishing trawler that was dragged backwards through the Irish Sea when it became snagged in its nets.
Articles draw on the statement made by Armed Forces Minister Penny Mordaunt in parliament yesterday, which set out:
“The Royal Navy has now confirmed that a UK submarine was, in fact, responsible for snagging the Karen’s nets. The incident, the delay in identifying and addressing the events on that day, and their consequences, are deeply regretted.”
Various MPs are quoted in the pieces. Margaret Ritchie, the MP for South Down, says that fishermen must be confident that their vessels will not be damaged by submarine activity and where incidents do take place, the Government will own up to it immediately.
IRAN
The Times reports that Iran has made clear that it has no intention of softening its anti-American rhetoric, despite the nuclear deal with the West, by unveiling a plaque outside the US embassy that lists 100 official terms of abuse for America. Only a week earlier workmen had started painting over decades-old “Death to America” slogans on the walls of the US embassy, disused since the US broke off relations in 1980.
AFGHANISTAN
ISIL militants have been blamed for the roadside murder of 13 Shia Muslims in a rare sectarian attack in Afghanistan that was condemned by the Taliban, reports the Times. The attackers targeted members of the country’s Hazara minority, a Shia ethnic group easily identified by their oriental appearance. The men were dragged from vehicles and summarily shot by the road in the northern province of Balkh, where there has been little violence.
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