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Britain to Build Billion-Pound Weapons Works as Starmer Calls for War Readiness

Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer speaks during a press conference, following a deal on the Chagos Islands, at a military headquarters in London, Britain May 22, 2025. Thomas Krych/Pool via REUTERS
Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer speaks during a press conference, following a deal on the Chagos Islands, at a military headquarters in London, Britain May 22, 2025. Thomas Krych/Pool via REUTERS
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Britain to Build Billion-Pound Weapons Works as Starmer Calls for War Readiness

Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer speaks during a press conference, following a deal on the Chagos Islands, at a military headquarters in London, Britain May 22, 2025. Thomas Krych/Pool via REUTERS
Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer speaks during a press conference, following a deal on the Chagos Islands, at a military headquarters in London, Britain May 22, 2025. Thomas Krych/Pool via REUTERS

Britain must be ready to fight and win a war against states with advanced military forces, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said as his government announced a 1.5 billion-pound ($2.0 billion) plan to build at least six new weapons and explosives factories.
Starmer's warning came a day before he publishes a major review of Britain's military capabilities. The UK and countries across Europe are rapidly trying to boost their defense industries after US President Donald Trump said the continent had to take more responsibility for its own security.
"We are being directly threatened by states with advanced military forces, so we must be ready to fight and win," Starmer wrote in an article for The Sun on Sunday newspaper, citing as examples Russia's invasion of Ukraine and its co-operation with Iran and North Korea.
Defense Minister John Healey announced the munitions investment program in a BBC interview on Sunday, describing it as "a message to Moscow" as well as a way to stimulate the country's sluggish economy.
The Ministry of Defense said it would procure up to 7,000 long-range weapons, built in Britain. The extra investment means Britain will spend around 6 billion pounds on munitions in the current parliament, the MoD said.
The Sunday Times reported the government wanted to purchase US-made fighter jets capable of firing tactical nuclear weapons. The MoD did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the report.
The Strategic Defense Review, commissioned by Starmer's Labor government shortly after it won power last July, will set out the threats Britain faces and the military equipment and services needed to meet them.
Starmer has already committed to raise defense spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 and target a 3% level over the longer term.
The government has already announced a billion-pound plan to invest in Artificial Intelligence that can be used to enhance battlefield decision-making, and has separately committed to spend an extra 1.5 billion pounds to tackle the poor state of housing for the country's armed forces.

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World

Iran's Top Negotiator Threatens 'Faster, More Intense' Response to US Attacks

People walk past a large anti-US banner with reference to the dropping of the atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima, in Tehran on September 2, 2026. (Photo by Atta KENARE / AFP) /
People walk past a large anti-US banner with reference to the dropping of the atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima, in Tehran on September 2, 2026. (Photo by Atta KENARE / AFP) /
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Iran's Top Negotiator Threatens 'Faster, More Intense' Response to US Attacks

People walk past a large anti-US banner with reference to the dropping of the atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima, in Tehran on September 2, 2026. (Photo by Atta KENARE / AFP) /
People walk past a large anti-US banner with reference to the dropping of the atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima, in Tehran on September 2, 2026. (Photo by Atta KENARE / AFP) /

Iran's top negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf threatened on Sunday to launch swifter and more forceful responses to US attacks, after Tehran targeted American warships in retaliation for US attacks on tankers.

"The Americans must have understood that the era of proportionate responses has come to an end," said Ghalibaf in a speech carried by state media, adding that "any aggression against Iran's interests and security will receive a faster, more intense and more painful response.”

Iran said Sunday that it struck an unmanned US military boat in the Strait of Hormuz.

US Central Command, which oversees the US military operations in the Middle East, did not confirm the claim or respond to request for comment. It comes one day after the US said it struck Iranian oil tankers in retaliation for Iran launching ballistic missiles at Navy warships.

World

A Fuel Tanker Explosion in West Iran Kills 11 and Injures 7

A fuel tanker exploded in western Iran, killing 11 people and injuring seven others, according to the state media.(AP)
A fuel tanker exploded in western Iran, killing 11 people and injuring seven others, according to the state media.(AP)
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A Fuel Tanker Explosion in West Iran Kills 11 and Injures 7

A fuel tanker exploded in western Iran, killing 11 people and injuring seven others, according to the state media.(AP)
A fuel tanker exploded in western Iran, killing 11 people and injuring seven others, according to the state media.(AP)

A fuel tanker exploded in western Iran, killing 11 people and injuring seven others, state media said.

IRNA reported late Saturday that the tanker hit other cars before bursting into flames near a traffic police station close to the Kurdish city of Sanandaj, some 400 kilometers (248 miles) west of the capital, Tehran. The report cited a faulty brake system, The Associated Press said.

The injured were transferred to hospitals.

In 2018, a similar road accident between a fuel tanker and an intercity passenger bus near Sanandaj killed 15 people and injured four.

Road and traffic accidents annually leave more than 17,000 dead in Iran. Experts blame the high fatality rate on unsafe vehicles, disregard for traffic rules, and inadequate emergency services.

World

Nepali Rescuers Buoyed by Miracle Finds but Tough Conditions Persist

Nepal Army personnel work to build an iron bridge across Tadi Khola river following the deadly flash floods and mudslide, in Devighat, Nuwakot district, Nepal, September 4, 2026. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi
Nepal Army personnel work to build an iron bridge across Tadi Khola river following the deadly flash floods and mudslide, in Devighat, Nuwakot district, Nepal, September 4, 2026. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi
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Nepali Rescuers Buoyed by Miracle Finds but Tough Conditions Persist

Nepal Army personnel work to build an iron bridge across Tadi Khola river following the deadly flash floods and mudslide, in Devighat, Nuwakot district, Nepal, September 4, 2026. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi
Nepal Army personnel work to build an iron bridge across Tadi Khola river following the deadly flash floods and mudslide, in Devighat, Nuwakot district, Nepal, September 4, 2026. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi

Nepali rescuers faced challenging conditions on Sunday as search operations after catastrophic floods entered their 12th day, buoyed by the extraordinary rescues of four survivors.

The glacial and mountain collapse on the China-Nepal border has killed at least 1,372 people and left more than 5,500 missing across the two countries, AFP said.

Rescuers found two more people alive on Saturday, joining two saved the day before in what have been described as miraculous tales of survival.

Three of those have been found in hydropower tunnels where the government initially said it believed more than 100 workers could be alive.

"Search and rescue is going on at the tunnels despite geography, adverse weather and lack of connectivity," Energy Minister Biraj Bhakta Shrestha told AFP.

Rescue workers were experiencing "multiple challenges", he said.

The wall of icy water and debris tore through mountain districts on August 26, destroying roads, bridges and other infrastructure.

On Saturday, rescuers pulled a Chinese man alive from deep inside a hydropower tunnel, and a 64-year-old Nepali woman, Chandrika Shrestha, from her mud-covered home.

Prime Minister Balendra Shah said the latter rescue had "given hope to the entire nation".

A day earlier, two Nepali hydropower workers were rescued at the Trishuli 3A tunnel, where searches continue alongside multiple other sites, with at least 12 hydropower projects affected.

Biraj Bhakta Shrestha said work was continuing to restore electricity in several areas.

"Places that have unreachable, we've tried to restore power with solar," he told AFP.

Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal has called the disaster a "Himalayan tsunami" and has warned reconstruction costs could run into the billions of dollars.

The United Nations has said the magnitude of the destruction makes delivering aid an immense challenge, and has launched a $50 million appeal to help more than 84,000 people.

With mortuaries overflowing, Nepal has buried hundreds of bodies in mass graves, after taking DNA samples for future identification, according to the police.

Only around 100 bodies have been identified and handed over to families.

Nepal will hold a national day of mourning on Monday, the 13th day since the disaster, in line with a traditional period of mourning in Hindu rituals.

While the exact cause of the glacial collapse is unclear, climate change is accelerating glacial melting worldwide, increasing the risk of such disasters.

In Nepal, rescuers have retrieved 1,341 bodies, while around 4,996 people remain missing, according to the disaster agency.

Chinese state media report that 31 people have been killed and 531 are missing in Tibet.

The combined toll is 1,372 dead and more than 5,500 missing, including around 800 foreigners, among them tourists and pilgrims.