London: The United Kingdom has halted reconnaissance flights over the occupied Palestinian territories and Gaza Strip, the UK Ministry of Defense declared on Thursday. The flights were initially focused on locating prisoners, including several Britons, held by the Hamas movement.
According to Kuwait News Agency, the Ministry of Defence conducted surveillance flights over the Eastern Mediterranean, operating in air space over Israel and Gaza from December 2023. The ministry clarified that these surveillance aircraft were unarmed and did not have a combat role, emphasizing their sole task was to locate hostages.
The UK government maintained strict control over the dissemination of information, ensuring that only details pertinent to hostage rescue were shared with Israeli authorities. Following the agreement of the Gaza peace plan between Israel and Hamas and the subsequent release of remaining prisoners, the Ministry of Defence has ceased surveillance flights over Gaza. The final flight occurred on October 10, 2025.