Dominic Raab today warned that ISIS would be the 'only winners' from war with Iran as Britons brace for revenge attacks after the killing of Qassem Soleimani.

The Foreign Secretary stressed the need to 'de-escalate' tensions, saying it was crucial to keep hold of the 'hard-won gains' against the terrorist group in Iraq.

The comments came as Mr Raab headed to Brussels for talks with European counterparts on the mounting crisis.

Boris Johnson gathered Cabinet this morning for the first time since the dramatic US strike that killed Soleimani in Baghdad on Friday.

He stressed to his senior ministers the 'importance of protecting British citizens and interests and deescalating tensions', his official spokesman said.

Mr Johnson will take stock with security chiefs late this afternoon, amid claims evacuation plans are being prepared for UK personnel in the region.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace will also update MPs about the future of British troops based in Iraq when he addresses the Commons this afternoon as they return from the Christmas break.

Asked why Mr Wallace is speaking today instead of the PM, who has made no public appearance to discuss Iran since returning from a Caribbean holiday on Sunday, Mr Johnson's spokesman said: 'The PM leads a Cabinet government and the response to events in the Middle East is a collective Cabinet response.'

It is also far from clear that Mr Johnson will even attend the statement later. Quizzed on the premier's movements, his official spokesman said: 'I believe the PM is working from Number 10 today.'

Tehran has threatened to make British forces 'collateral damage' in reprisals against Donald Trump.

But Mr Johnson is facing criticism that he was 'caught short' by the US president's actions and the government response has been too slow.

Mr Raab said the government was focused on the need to find a peaceful way through the standoff. He said ISIS - also known as Daesh - would benefit from 'full-blown' war.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab today stressed the need to 'de-escalate' tensions with Iran

Boris Johnson has been desperately trying to ease tensions in the wake of the dramatic US strike that killed general Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad on Friday

Housing minister Esther McVey (left) and Northern Powerhouse minister Jake Berry were at the first Cabinet meeting since Christmas today

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace (right), Zac Goldsmith (right) and Environment Secretary Theresa Villiers were among the ministers at Cabinet today

Soleimani's death has galvanized Iranians around revenge for the 'martyr'; Hundreds of thousands crowded into Tehran streets to see his coffin on Monday

Trade Secretary Liz Truss and Business Secretary Andrea Leadsom were in Downing Street as ministers were updated on the Iran situation

'The terrorists, in particular Daesh, would be the only winners,' he told reporters.

There are claims the Ministry of Defence is stepping up contingency plans to evacuate military and civilian personnel from neighbouring Iraq - where the Parliament has been demanding the expulsion of foreign forces.

The Times reported that a team of around 20 senior military planners and liaison officers had been dispatched to the embassy in Baghdad over the weekend.

Iran crisis exposes 'biggest ever cracks' in Western alliance, warns Jeremy Hunt The Iran crisis has exposed the 'biggest ever cracks', Jeremy Hunt warned today. The former foreign secretary said the killing of the general Qassem Soleimani without consultation from the US reflected a growing disregard toward Europe from Washington. This stemmed mostly from American disenchantment with defence spending by European countries, which invest 2 per cent of their GDP or less on defence whereas the US spends 4 per cent. 'In the end, money matters. If we're not prepared to cough up we should not be surprised if we are not consulted ahead of big decisions such as the taking out of General Suleimani,' he wrote in the Daily Telegraph, 'Nor should we be surprised if the Western alliance slowly starts to fracture as resentment builds up at European free-riding. To allow that would be a historic mistake.' Mr Hunt said many in Washington would happily abandon institutions such as NATO for an alternative scenario in which powers like the US, Russia and China 'carve up the world into spheres of influence'. If Britain did not want that, it had to behave 'like a real ally' to the US and pull its weight in global affairs, including making 'proper' contributions to world peace and security and persuading EU countries to do the same. Advertisement

Mr Raab will have a bilateral meeting with the French foreign minister, Jean-Yves Le Drian, before they join their German and Italian counterparts and the EU High Representative for talks on Libya.

The so-called 'E3' - Britain, France and Germany - will then meet to discuss the tensions between the US and Iran, with all three pushing for de-escalation, a Foreign Office spokesman said.

Mr Raab spoke to his Iranian opposite number Mohammed Javad Zarif yesterday to stress the need for a diplomatic resolution to avoid a renewed conflict in the region.

Tehran has vowed 'severe revenge' for the killing of its top military commander Soleimani in a US drone strike last week.

Huge crowds have been gathering on the streets of Iran as the funeral of Soleimani takes place. His body is being buried in his home town.

Mr Trump in turn has warned the US is ready to strike back in a 'disproportionate' manner if the Iranians hit US targets.

The Prime Minister has faced criticism he was slow to respond to the crisis - only returning to the UK at the weekend following his new year break on the private Caribbean island of Mustique.

The former national security adviser Lord Ricketts said that ministers should have been quicker to react to the escalation.

'I think that the British Government were caught short by this,' he told BBC2's Newsnight.

'People were still on holiday, and there wasn't sufficient early recognition at the top level that this is a serious crisis and really dangerous for Western interests in the Middle East.

'Yes, I'm glad to see that the wheels are now in motion and things are happening but we are four days downwind of this sudden and dramatic escalation.'

Lord Ricketts said he would have expected the National Security Council to have met on Friday, when the killing of Gen Soleimani took place, to co-ordinate measures to ensure British nationals were protected.

'That may have been going on behind the scenes but there wasn't, as far as I could see, a collective discussion among senior ministers.'

Mr Johnson has sought to tread a delicate diplomatic path - joining with French and German allies in calling for a 'de-escalation' in the region.

At the same time, he is anxious to maintain good relations with the Trump administration ahead of talks with the US on a post-Brexit trade deal.

Mr Raab is due to fly to Washington later this week to meet Secretary of State Mike Pompeo after he criticised the lack of support by the Europeans - including the UK - for the US action.

The Foreign Secretary echoed Mr Johnson in saying the UK would not 'lament' the passing of Gen Soleimani who he described as a 'regional threat'.

Key figure: The letter from the Marine general in charge of coalition forces fighting ISIS and training the Iraqi army comes after the drone strike which killed Iran's Qassem Soleimani, its most senior commander who the U.S. designated a terrorist

Donald Trump has warned the US is ready to strike back in a 'disproportionate' manner if the Iranians hit US targets

However he also warned that a threat by Mr Trump to target Iranian cultural sites would be a breach of international law.

'We have been very clear that cultural sites are protected under international law and we would expect that to be respected,' he said.

Meanwhile US defence secretary Mark Esper was forced to deny the US was about to withdraw its troops from Iraq where the strike on Gen Soleimani took place.

A leaked letter from a US Marine Corps commander said that in 'due deference to the sovereignty of the Republic of Iraq', the coalition would be 're-positioning forces over the coming days and weeks to prepare for onward movement'.

It added: 'We respect your sovereign decision to order our departure.'

It followed a vote in the Iraqi parliament on Sunday, backed by prime minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi, calling for the withdrawal of all foreign troops including British forces.

The Pentagon said the letter, addressed to the Iraqi defence ministry had been a 'poorly worded' draft which should never have been released.

Mr Esper told reporters in Washington: 'There's been no decision whatsoever to leave Iraq. There's no decision to leave, nor did we issue any plans to leave or prepare to leave.'

Mr Johnson emphasised the need to maintain a coalition presence in Iraq against Islamic State when he spoke by telephone to Mr Abdul-Mahdi yesterday.

Around 400 UK troops are stationed in Iraq in the fight against IS, while the US has 5,200, prompting fears of a withdrawal that could cripple the battle against the terror group.