UK should do more in Syria, Cameron tells parliament

Seeking support for more British military action in Syria, Prime Minister David Cameron told the House of Commons on Tuesday that the Paris attacks had made stronger the case for effectively dealing with the growing threat from international terrorism.

Seeking support for more British military action in Syria, Prime Minister David Cameron told the House of Commons on Tuesday that the Paris attacks had made stronger the case for effectively dealing with the growing threat from international terrorism.

With lessons of the Iraq conflict fresh in mind, there is less appetite for British involvement in overseas conflict amid demands that any future action should be sanctioned by parliament. Cameron promised to announce a “comprehensive strategy” for military action in Syria.

He said much work had been done in Britain since the 2008 Mumbai attacks, and added that adequate plans are in place to deal with such terrorist strikes.

He said: “It is in Syria, in Raqqa, that ISIL has its headquarters and it is from Raqqa that some of the main threats against this country are planned and orchestrated. Raqqa, if you like, is the head of the snake. Over Syria we are supporting our allies, the US, France, Jordan and the Gulf countries, with intelligence, with surveillance and with refuelling.”

Cameron added, “But I believe, as I have said many times before, we should be doing more. We face a direct and growing threat to our country and we need to deal with it not just in Iraq but in Syria too... The case for doing so has only grown stronger after Paris.”