Thread by @AsaWinstanley

🧵A thread of Britain's direct military & intelligence participation in Israel's Gaza genocide, based on @kennardmatt's @declassifiedUK reporting:

1) 8 May: "The Royal Air Force (RAF) has flown 200 surveillance flights over Gaza since December..."
declassifieduk.org/revealed-uk-mi…

"... March saw the highest number of British spy flights over Gaza with 44 missions ... Gaza sits around 30 minutes flight time from the base [in Cyprus] so it is likely the RAF has gathered around 1,000 hours of surveillance footage over Gaza."

"A British spy flight was in the air on Monday April 1 when three Britons were killed in an Israeli strike on aid workers in Gaza. John Chapman, 57, James Henderson, 33, and James Kirby, 47, were among seven World Central Kitchen workers killed in the targeted assassination."

2) 29 May: "Britain’s military has flown 60 aircraft to Israel since it began bombing Gaza in October, new information shows... The purpose of these flights remains unclear..." declassifieduk.org/60-british-war…

"The C-17 [aircraft] is capable of transporting 134 personnel and many types of military equipment, including Abrams tanks and three Black Hawk helicopters."

"The US military, which also operates C-17s, notes that its role is to 'rapidly project and sustain an effective combat force close to a potential battle area'."

"Meanwhile, the A400M can carry 116 fully-equipped troops and military equipment including Chinook helicopters. This means the UK military could have transported up to 4,300 personnel to Israel from RAF Akrotiri alone."

3) 11 June: "A senior Israeli official has said that a British spy team has been deployed to Israel since it began bombing Gaza in October... The Israeli official said 'the outside intelligence' provided by Britain had given them 'added value'..." declassifieduk.org/the-british-sp…

"The Israeli official added that Britain had 'been able to provide intelligence from the air and cyberspace that Israel cannot collect on its own'..."

"It is not known what UK agencies the personnel in the British team deployed in Israel belong to, although it is likely to involve the SAS, Britain’s elite special forces unit... It is also likely that GCHQ and MI6 personnel are involved..."

4) And from 22 July, by Matt's colleagues @pmillerinfo and @jmcevoy_2:

"Britain’s Ministry of Defence holds video surveillance footage of Gaza from the day that Israel killed seven international aid workers but is refusing to publish the tape..." declassifieduk.org/uk-covers-up-g…

"Among those killed in the World Central Kitchen convoy on 1 April were 3 British military veterans: John Chapman, James Kirby and James ‘Jim’ Henderson. The footage was taken by a Royal Air Force (RAF) surveillance plane which spent [about] five hours above Gaza that day..."

"It seemingly returned to base in Cyprus minutes before the airstrikes were launched. The RAF may therefore have collected footage of events leading up to the tragedy, which could provide clarity over Israeli claims that 'Hamas gunmen' were seen near the convoy..."

"The Ministry of Defence (MoD) claims the tape is exempt from disclosure on security grounds and hinted that its contents may relate to UK special forces or MI6..."

Also on 1 April "Israeli forces withdrew from al-Shifa hospital, once the biggest and best-equipped medical facility in the Gaza Strip. They left behind a trail of death and destruction, with the hospital buildings raised to the ground and around 400 Palestinians killed."