Brits living on a military base in Cyprus had just ten minutes to take cover before an Iranian drone smashed into it. The Iranian drone hit the US section of RAF Akrotiri on Monday morning as the regime continues to retaliate against the killing of its Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

More than 4,000 military personnel and their families live in the base which serves as a crucial launch pad for military operations in the Middle East. According to reports, sirens on the base warned of an attack at 11.45pm on Sunday evening, with RAF Typhoons scrambled to attempt to shoot them down. Just 11 minutes later, residents received mobile phone alerts telling them to take cover under “substantial, solid furniture”.

A source told the Sun: “I saw the message at the same times as the explosion. It all happened at the same time. It was hard to think the sirens were so loud.”

Just after 1am UK time, a statement from British Forces Cyprus (BFC) advised residents of Akrotiri village to find shelter until further notice.

It is understood that the missiles were fired from Lebanon and were able to evade detection systems by skimming close to the Mediterranean Sea, meaning their presence was not picked up until they were 20 minutes from the target.

Officials said the base was continuing to operate as normal, but that family members of personnel had been moved away as a precaution and schools had been shut.

BFC said on its social media pages that a “temporary dispersal” of non-essential personnel had taken place.

The damage on Akrotiri by the drone was said to be “minimal” and there were no casualties, officials said.

A Ministry of Defence spokesperson said: “The safety of our personnel and their families is our absolute priority.

“As a precautionary measure, we are moving family members who live at RAF Akrotiri to alternative accommodation nearby on the island of Cyprus.

“Our base and personnel continue to operate as normal protecting the safety of Britain and our interests.”

The strike came just hours after the Prime Minister gave the US permission to operate from British bases against Iran, but only in a limited role targeting missile sites.

The US president criticised the refusal to grant permission to use the base for the initial strikes against Iran’s military and leadership.

“That’s probably never happened between our countries before,” he said, adding: “It sounds like he was worried about the legality.”

Referring to Sir Keir’s change of position, he added: “It is useful. It took far too much time. Far too much time.”

Downing Street said the only way to stop the threat of missiles is to destroy them “at source”.

Shooting missiles out of the sky can be challenging, and targeting the launching sites themselves is far more effective, it is understood.