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Britain’s Prime Minister has come under pressure to boost his defence budget as he detailed the UK’s role in the air strikes on Yemen.
Rishi Sunak was also told by his own MPs not to scrap key naval equipment at a time when global threats were growing.
The comments came as he outlined to parliament details of the attacks by US and UK forces against 14 targets on Friday, arguing that people had to “recognise the risks of inaction”.
RAF Typhoon fighter bombers attacked two targets in north-west Yemen, striking nine buildings at the Bani airfield and a further three buildings at Abbs that included a cruise missile launcher, Mr Sunak said.
The attacks were “limited not escalatory,” he said and a “direct response to Houthi attacks” on Red Sea shipping.
He warned that failing to take action against the barrage of Houthi missile and drone strikes since the Israel-Gaza conflict began would “weaken international security, and the rule of law, further damage freedom of navigation … and set a dangerous precedent, with British vessels fair game”.
But with wars continuing in Gaza and Ukraine and the growing threat of conflict between China and Taiwan, former Coldstream Guards officer Richard Drax, MP, argued it was vital for defence spending to increase beyond its current target of two per cent of GDP.
“We face dangerous times,” he said. “Without doubt defence needs a lot more money. More than 2.5 per cent [of GDP] if our brave men and women are going to fight in a sustained conflict in the years ahead.”
UK conducts air strikes in Yemen - in pictures
Mr Sunak responded that defence had recently received its largest spending boost since the Cold War ended.
“The threats are increasing and it's right that we invest to protect people against those threats,” he replied.
Another veteran Tory MP, Julian Lewis, also indirectly criticised the state of Britain’s armed forces, highlighting that during the 1982 Falklands War Britain had 35 frigates and destroyers while spending 4.5 per cent of GDP on defence. “Both those figures can be cut in half to describe our situation today,” he said.
But he also raised an embarrassing issue for the Ministry of Defence: The fact that it looks likely to decommission the Royal Marines' amphibious assault ships that transport troops around the globe.
“Does he agree with me that we certainly should not be reducing the numbers of frigates and destroyers and we certainly should not be decommissioning our amphibious assault ships?” he asked.
Mr Sunak responded that it was the government’s “intention” to increase defence spending to 2.5 per cent “when circumstances allow” and that it had “a very strong equipment plan”.
The Royal Marines shipping issue was also being examined to ensure they could be “deployed globally”.
Earlier the Defence Secretary stated that the post-Cold War “peace dividend” was finished and that the West needed to prepare for conflicts with Russia, North Korea, Iran and China.
Grant Shapps warned that the world had moved to a “pre-war” phase and called on allies to increase defence spending to match the threats.
“The era of peace dividend is over,” he said in a speech at Lancaster House in London, “In five years’ time, we could be looking at multiple theatres involving Russia, China, Iran, North Korea. “Looking at today’s conflicts across the world, is it more likely that the number grows or reduces? I suspect we all know the answer – it’s likely to grow.”
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Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants
Genesis G80 2020 5.0-litre Royal Specs
Engine: 5-litre V8
Gearbox: eight-speed automatic
Power: 420hp
Torque: 505Nm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.4L/100km
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Age: 42
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Favourite drink: drip coffee V60
Favourite destination: Bali, Indonesia
Favourite book: 100 Years of Solitude
Bangladesh tour of Pakistan
January 24 – First T20, Lahore
January 25 – Second T20, Lahore
January 27 – Third T20, Lahore
February 7-11 – First Test, Rawalpindi
April 3 – One-off ODI, Karachi
April 5-9 – Second Test, Karachi
THE SPECS
Engine: 3.6-litre V6
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Under 19 World Cup
Group A: India, Japan, New Zealand, Sri Lanka
Group B: Australia, England, Nigeria, West Indies
Group C: Bangladesh, Pakistan, Scotland, Zimbabwe
Group D: Afghanistan, Canada, South Africa, UAE
UAE fixtures
Saturday, January 18, v Canada
Wednesday, January 22, v Afghanistan
Saturday, January 25, v South Africa
SPECS
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The bio
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Favourite quote: “The world makes way for the man who knows where he is going.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson, American essayist
Favourite Authors: Arab poet Abu At-Tayyib Al-Mutanabbi
Favourite Emirati food: Luqaimat, a deep-fried dough soaked in date syrup
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Catchweight 82kg
Piotr Kuberski (POL) beat Ahmed Saeb (IRQ) by decision.
Women’s bantamweight
Corinne Laframboise (CAN) beat Cornelia Holm (SWE) by unanimous decision.
Welterweight
Omar Hussein (PAL) beat Vitalii Stoian (UKR) by unanimous decision.
Welterweight
Josh Togo (LEB) beat Ali Dyusenov (UZB) by unanimous decision.
Flyweight
Isaac Pimentel (BRA) beat Delfin Nawen (PHI) TKO round-3.
Catchweight 80kg
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Mohammad Yahya (UAE) beat Ramadan Noaman (EGY) TKO round 2.
Lightweight
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Welterweight
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Featherweight
Elias Boudegzdame (ALG) beat Austin Arnett (USA) by unanimous decision.
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Maciej Sosnowski (POL) beat Ibrahim El Sawi (EGY) by submission round 1.
History's medical milestones
1799 - First small pox vaccine administered
1846 - First public demonstration of anaesthesia in surgery
1861 - Louis Pasteur published his germ theory which proved that bacteria caused diseases
1895 - Discovery of x-rays
1923 - Heart valve surgery performed successfully for first time
1928 - Alexander Fleming discovers penicillin
1953 - Structure of DNA discovered
1952 - First organ transplant - a kidney - takes place
1954 - Clinical trials of birth control pill
1979 - MRI, or magnetic resonance imaging, scanned used to diagnose illness and injury.
1998 - The first adult live-donor liver transplant is carried out
BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Friday (All UAE kick-off times)
Borussia Dortmund v Eintracht Frankfurt (11.30pm)
Saturday
Union Berlin v Bayer Leverkusen (6.30pm)
FA Augsburg v SC Freiburg (6.30pm)
RB Leipzig v Werder Bremen (6.30pm)
SC Paderborn v Hertha Berlin (6.30pm)
Hoffenheim v Wolfsburg (6.30pm)
Fortuna Dusseldorf v Borussia Monchengladbach (9.30pm)
Sunday
Cologne v Bayern Munich (6.30pm)
Mainz v FC Schalke (9pm)
Pharaoh's curse
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He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
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Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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