British troops supported US operations in the January 2020 drone strike that killed Iranian general Qasem Soleimani, with their role later recognised in an RAF operational honours list, according to reporting by Phil Miller of Declassified UK.
Seven UK service personnel were awarded a commendation for their “vital operational” contribution during a period of heightened tension that followed the assassination.
The strike, ordered by US president Donald Trump, brought the region to the brink of wider conflict and was deemed unlawful by a UN expert. While the RAF’s November 2020 honours list acknowledged an operational team based at Muharraq in Bahrain, it did not publicly link the award to the Soleimani strike or its aftermath.
Further details have since emerged through Miller’s freedom of information request. According to a summary of the award citation obtained by Declassified UK, UK commanders described the situation following Soleimani’s death as “arguably the most dynamic and intense” faced by naval forces in recent years.
The personnel involved were stationed at Muharraq, a US naval facility located roughly 190km from Iran, where Britain maintains a limited military presence.
Over a nine day period, the team provided logistical support to British and US units deployed across the central Arabian Gulf. Their responsibilities included coordinating the movement of personnel to and from ships at sea and ensuring the delivery of high priority operational stores. Miller reports that they secured space on a US Sea Dragon helicopter, a heavy lift aircraft, and helped establish key lines of communication with deployed assets. The full citation remains classified, with the Ministry of Defence arguing that additional disclosure could expose sensitive information about troop movements.
Soleimani, who led Iran’s Quds Force, was among the country’s most senior military figures and played a central role in its regional military strategy. His killing triggered widespread concern about escalation.
Bahrain, which hosts the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet and supports British naval operations, was considered a potential target for Iranian retaliation. In response, the UK increased its military posture in the Gulf and withdrew some personnel from Iraq.
The activities of the Muharraq-based team appear to have formed part of these broader contingency measures, including efforts to protect shipping and sustain allied deployments.
There is a persistent lack of transparency around UK military activity in the region. Although the RAF honours list publicly recognised an operational team at Muharraq, it omitted the context in which the award was granted.
The newly disclosed material therefore suggests a deeper level of British involvement in the operational response to the Soleimani strike than had previously been acknowledged, something most British citizens would have been unaware of.
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