The home secretary has said the government is consulting on precisely how the removal of families with children will work.

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Speaking to Trevor Phillips on Sky News on Thursday, Ms Mahmood said it was important to "enforce" the law.

She said: "This is about immigration enforcement and it's about being in a process where you are able to enforce your rules.

"If you don't do that, the flip side is you just end up picking up the tab for hundreds of families, hundreds of thousands of pounds per family every single year.

"And it is the taxpayer in the end that's paying the price of that."

The cabinet minister said there is "no easy solution" to cutting illegal immigration but "if you're going to have rules, then you better enforce them".

She added: "Otherwise you might as well say to everybody, there's no rules enforced at all. It's an open border situation. And I don't think that has public support either."

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However she insisted that where children were concerned, this would be done "humanely".

"We already have arrangements in this country, legal arrangements about how we would handle children, whether that's in a school setting, whether that's with the police, whether that's in... other parts of public service.

"So, there are already well-used rules about the way that we approach the handling of children. And, of course, we would want to do this as humanely and as effectively as possible."

In a speech setting out immigration reforms today, Ms Mahmood said failed asylum seeker families will be offered £10,000 per person up to a max of £40,000 to leave the UK and if they don't voluntarily leave, they will be deported.

She said a similar model in Denmark had been a "great success" and that this would reduce the cost to the taxpayer of housing asylum seekers in hotels.

In her speech she said: "For too long, families who have failed their claims have known that we are not enforcing our rules, which created a perverse incentive to make a channel crossing with children in a small boats."

He also said he'd had the option of deploying HMS Dragon to the Mediterranean for weeks.

Interviewed at RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus, the minister was asked by Sky's Europe correspondent Ali Bunkall if he could rule out Britain joining the conflict in an offensive capacity.

He responded: "As circumstances in any conflict change, you've got to be willing to adapt the action you take."

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Mr Healey then listed defensive measures that were being taken, including the use of anti-drone helicopters, deploying HMS Dragon to the eastern Mediterranean, and bringing in planners to co-ordinate an international response.

Pressed on whether he would rule out British aircraft taking part in offensive operations over Iran, Mr Healey again demurred.

"Everything that we have done is defensive, is legal, and is coordinated with other allies," he said.

The minister's visit to the island comes after a drone attack on RAF Akrotiri on Monday, with two more UAVs intercepted en-route to the base later that day.

During his visit, Mr Healey met with his Cypriot counterpart Vasilis Palmas "to discuss how the UK is further reinforcing our air defences to support our shared security", a government spokesman said.

Iran has been unleashing rocket and drone attacks across the Middle East after the US and Israel launched a joint-attack on the country on Saturday.

In the aftermath of Monday's drone attack, the decision was made to deploy HMS Dragon, an air-defence warship, to the Mediterranean.

But Sky News revealed on Wednesday that the ship was not ready to depart and would not sail until next week.

Asked when the option of deploying HMS Dragon first crossed his desk, Mr Healey deflected.

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He said it was one of the options he'd had available when he made decisions weeks before the start of the conflict to strengthen British defences in the region.

He added that the decision to deploy the warship had been taken because the government was "now in a position to judge better the nature of the Iranian response".

Donald Trump put out a social media post announcing she was being replaced by a senator from Oklahoma.

He said Ms Noem would be moving to a new job, special envoy for the Shield of the Americas, in about three weeks.

Posting on Truth Social, his own social media network, Mr Trump praised her "numerous and spectacular results" in the role.

But a White House official struck a very different tone when they spoke about her dismissal to NBC News, Sky's US partner network.

They said her sacking was "a culmination of her many unfortunate leadership failures".

Ms Noem becomes the first cabinet secretary to leave during the president's second term.

She came under scrutiny after calling the actions of Renee Nicole Good in Minnesota an "act of domestic terrorism" after she was shot dead by ICE agents.

Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse, was fatally shot by Border Patrol agents two weeks later.

At hearings in Congress this week, Ms Noem faced stinging criticism from fellow Republicans - particularly over a £165m ($220m) ad campaign she appeared in that encouraged people in the US illegally to leave voluntarily.

She insisted that Mr Trump was aware of the campaign in advance, but he contradicted her in an interview, saying he did not sign off on it.

She faced further criticism over the pace of emergency funding approved through the Federal Emergency Management Agency, as well as over the White House's response to disasters.

Speaking to NBC News, a White House official named these among her failures, as well as "allegations of infidelity".

Congressional hearings this week touched on these allegations when Ms Noem was asked if she had had "sexual relations with Corey Lewandowski" - Mr Trump's former campaign manager.

She dismissed the question as "tabloid garbage".

The White House official added: "Kristi's drama sadly overshadowed and distracted from the Administration's extremely popular immigration agenda, which will continue full force."

In his social media post, Mr Trump wrote: "I am pleased to announce that the Highly Respected United States Senator from the Great State of Oklahoma, Markwayne Mullin, will become the United States Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS), effective March 31, 2026.

"The current Secretary, Kristi Noem, who has served us well, and has had numerous and spectacular results (especially on the Border!), will be moving to be Special Envoy for The Shield of the Americas, our new Security Initiative in the Western Hemisphere we are announcing on Saturday in Doral, Florida.

"I thank Kristi for her service at 'Homeland.'"

Ms Noem addressed a Department of Homeland Security event moments after Mr Trump's announcement but didn't mention her change of role.

She spoke for more than 20 minutes, but read prepared remarks reinforcing the president's message from the State of the Union last month.

Mr Mullin has to be confirmed in his post by the Senate, but he can serve as acting secretary as long as his nomination is formally pending.

In a post on X, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the president was grateful to Ms Noem "for helping usher in the most secure border in American history".

She added: "President Trump's immigration agenda is keeping our borders secure and deporting illegal alien criminals from our country, and it will continue without interruption."

Hakeem Jeffries, who leads the rival Democratic party in the House of Representatives, branded Ms Noem a "deeply unqualified, unhinged, out-of-control, pathological liar who repeatedly abused her power".

He continued: "She was a complete and total disaster. We made clear weeks ago that Kristi Noem must be fired or she would face impeachment. Her well-deserved termination is long overdue, consistent with what we have demanded."

There has been an internet blackout since the start of the war on 28 February.

Satellite imagery has become one of the few ways to find out what is happening on the ground.

Zoom in to explore strike locations in satellite map

Missile bases

The US and Israel are targeting Iran's missile bases to reduce the regime's ability to launch ballistic missiles.

A base in the northwest of Isfahan, located near the 'Ahmad Kazemi barracks', named after IRGC general Ahmad Kazemi, was targeted.

Images from 1 March show initial damage to a building at the site and then on 3 March show the same building flattened.

The building on the left-hand side was previously targeted in June by Israel and has been targeted again.

It's one of several missile bases that have been targeted. Another close to Kermanshah in northwest Iran was also hit.

It's one of Iran's extensive underground "missile cities", which are deep tunnel complexes built into mountains to house and shield large parts of the country's missile arsenal from detection and attack.

In imagery from 4 March provided by Planet Labs, Sky News has identified at least 10 buildings that have been destroyed. Alongside the buildings, there are craters left from strikes at the front of tunnel entrances. This tactic may be being used to collapse the tunnels.

Iran's missile capabilities are a threat to the US and Israel. They produce multiple different missile types. The longest-range missile, the Sajjil, has a maximum range of up to 2,000km (1,242 miles). That's far enough to hit Moscow or Athens - making any missile base a key target.

US Central Command (CENTCOM) said on 4 March that the number of Iran's missile launches has dropped 86% in four days.

Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of CENTCOM, said that hundreds of air defence sites, ballistic missiles and drones had been destroyed by US strikes.

Naval ports

Ports have also been targeted by the US and Israel. They are being targeted as this is where Iran's navy operates from, launching missiles and attacks.

Imagery from satellite provider Vantor and European Space Imaging show Konarak naval port in southern Iran was badly damaged.

Satellite images from 4 March show two destroyed buildings at the port and a sunken Iranian ship.

The head of US Central Command, which oversees American military operations in the Middle East, claimed that 17 Iranian vessels, including its "most operational" submarine, have been destroyed.

The naval base is significant because it sits very close to the Strait of Hormuz, a key commercial shipping route being controlled by Iran. The base is used by Iran's Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) and is said to launch patrols and exercises in the Gulf of Oman and Indian Ocean, staging missile and naval training operations.

Konarak also supports the port of Chabahar, one of Iran's only deep-water ports with direct access to the Indian Ocean.

Another port targeted was the military harbour at Bandar Abbas, which is the main headquarters of the Iranian navy, and provides access to the Strait of Hormuz.

The imagery shows the Iranian vessel, IRIS Makran, with a plume of smoke after a strike on 2 March.

Although unclear how much damage the vessel sustained, the ship is Iran's largest naval vessel and serves as a floating base. If out of operation, this will be a blow to the naval capabilities of the regime.

In more recent imagery from 4 March, it appears a building can be seen with major damage to the roof.

Nuclear facilities

Nuclear facilities have been targeted as the West believes Iran is building a nuclear weapon.

One of the locations targeted was Natanz Fuel Enrichment Plant in western Iran.

Natanz Fuel Enrichment Plant is Iran's primary uranium-enrichment plant that is known to be operating after US and Israeli strikes in June 2025. According to Rafael Grossi, of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the centrifuges were "severely damaged if not destroyed altogether after this strike".

Additional strikes appear to have taken place on 2 March.

Imagery from 3 March shows three buildings destroyed at the site.

The IAEA confirmed damage to the entrance on the site on 3 March.

The Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS) confirmed the buildings were damaged at personnel and vehicle entrances.

The dispute over Iran's nuclear programme is ongoing. The regime in Tehran has long insisted it has no intention of making a nuclear weapon.

Civilian infrastructure

Civilian infrastructure has been hit in the airstrikes. Some of the sites are near Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) facilities, including police stations.

Iranian officials said more than 150 people were killed when a girls' school was hit in the city of Minab on 28 February.

The school was located near an IRGC base.

Imagery from 4 March appears to show six locations where missiles or shrapnel likely fell on the school.

US secretary of state Marco Rubio said in an interview that "the United States would not deliberately target a school. Our objectives are missiles".

Israel also said it had not found any connection to their operations.

More satellite imagery shows Gandhi Hospital in Tehran.

Images from 1 March and 3 March show a television tower directly next to the hospital in ruins. Videos verified by Sky News show it wasn't just the television tower affected; the hospital was also hit.

The Data x Forensics team is a multi-skilled unit dedicated to providing transparent journalism from Sky News. We gather, analyse and visualise data to tell data-driven stories. We combine traditional reporting skills with advanced analysis of satellite images, social media and other open source information. Through multimedia storytelling we aim to better explain the world while also showing how our journalism is done.

The British defence secretary, visiting the base at the time, was taken into "a windowless room" just before he was due to dial into a COBRA meeting.

The warning system at the base is quite unsophisticated, unable to be specific like the Israeli equivalent, and so the alarms are sounded out of caution, not necessarily because something is incoming, but it did underline the threat to the island, so close to Lebanon and the Iranian proxy Hezbollah which is believed to be responsible for the attacks.

One drone did get through the defences on Sunday. It flew undetected, low to the sea, and was described as "tiny".

But it still managed to put a hole in a hangar normally used to house American U2 spy planes.

It probably wasn't a lucky shot: the hangar, with two U2s parked outside, is clearly visible on Google maps.

In my interview with John Healey I asked him when the option to deploy a Royal Navy destroyer first hit his desk. He suggested he'd had options for weeks. I pressed him to clarify it was his decision to delay then, and he didn't disagree.

But afterwards, defence sources told me the Royal Navy only gave him the option on Tuesday.

Either way, whether military planners or the defence secretary himself, the plan came too late for the Cypriot government and people on the island.

The ship won't depart until next week. A French frigate, the Languedoc, has already arrived off Cyprus. Based in Toulon, it was already much closer of course, but notably able to leave port immediately.

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Cyprus is being targeted because of the presence of British military, and they expect the UK to defend it accordingly.

Britain did take some precautions before the war with Iran started. Six F35 jets were sent to complement eight Typhoons permanently stationed in Cyprus.

Some of those F35s have been used to shoot down drones over Jordan in recent days.

Ground based, short range air defences have also been deployed and Wildcat helicopters, which have a capability to detect drones, are due to arrive in Cyprus over the weekend.

Senior military commanders argue that events have moved quickly, which they have, although the drumbeat to war was getting louder for weeks and Iran made no secret of its threat to attack widely across the region in response.

Attacks on RAF Akrotiri, which houses US personnel and belongs to Britain, still historically one of Iran's main enemies, should not have come as a surprise.

The British government originally denied the Americans access to use British bases for attacks on Iran because they didn't agree with the legal basis for the war. It has now reversed that decision based on the theory that American strikes on Iranian missile batteries are helping defend the region, and thereby British interests, from Iranian attacks.

On those grounds, would Britain go further and join in with offensive attacks, I asked the defence secretary. Three times he refused to rule that out.