Ministers Urged to Publish Attorney General's Warning on Legality of Joining War

Ministers were facing calls to publish the legal advice given to the government on Israel's war against Iran, after reports emerged that the attorney general had warned that any UK involvement beyond defensive support would be illegal.

- Eleni Courea Rowena Mason

Richard Hermer, the government's most senior legal adviser, is said to have raised concerns internally about the legality of joining a bombing campaign against Iran.

Ed Davey, the Liberal Democrat leader, said the government should publish Hermer's advice. "The last thing we need is for the UK to be dragged into another illegal war in the Middle East by the US," he said.

An official who had seen Hermer's official legal advice told the Spectator, which first reported the story, that the attorney general had "concerns about the UK playing any role in this except for defending our allies".

The UK has stepped up efforts to persuade Donald Trump to refrain from joining Israel's airstrikes in Iran. Keir Starmer said yesterday there was a "real risk of escalation" in the Middle East.

Asked about reports Trump had already approved a plan to attack Iran, but had not yet decided whether to go ahead, the prime minister said the situation was "fast-moving, and in those circumstances, it's really important to cling on to the key principles here. Obviously all of us, the UK included, are very concerned about the nuclear programme that Iran is developing, we've long been concerned about that. Also, [we] completely recognise Israel's right to self-defence, but the principle is that we need to de-escalate this.