Tuesday 1 December 2015

Boris article explains why he will be supporting the extension of action against Isil from Iraq to Syria badlands following UN decision

In the last 10 days, the UN Security Council has voted unanimously that “all necessary means” should be used to remove this haven for terror; and that is because every member of the security council – indeed every member of the UN – shares David Cameron’s reasonable ambition: to degrade and ultimately to destroy this gangster statelet.
To those who say we risk blowback, I say we already face a systematic terrorist threat; and it is wrong to contract out the fight. You cannot say the do-nothing option has worked: we have seen 240,000 people killed in Syria; we have seen millions displaced; the biggest refugee crisis in our lifetimes and terrorist plots emanating from the ideological cesspit of the so-called Islamic state. Of course bombing alone will not solve the problem; everyone can see that. But the military and political effort must go hand in hand, and Britain must be part of both. I hope Parliament votes resoundingly to join our allies in taking the fight to the enemy.


The proposal is not offered in a spirit of vindictiveness, or neo-con ideology. This motion represents the sober judgment of the Prime Minister about how to make this country safer – in the short and long term – from a movement that poses a growing threat to our way of life. The rhythm of horror has been quickening: the killing of 30 British tourists on a beach in Tunisia in June, the Russian jet blown from the sky earlier this month, the Paris massacre two weeks ago – all of them claimed directly by Syria-based Daesh/Isil – to say nothing of many other grisly bombings and shootings around the world.
At home, British security services and counter-terrorism police are now obliged to monitor thousands of people who could intend harm to this country. The pace of activity has accelerated to the point where they are now making almost one arrest every day. A 15-year-old British boy was recently sentenced to life imprisonment – yes, life – for his role in a terrorist plot. He was radicalised over the internet. The men who corrupted him were based in the so-called Islamic State in Syria.
In June, a 17-year-old from Dewsbury became this country’s youngest home-grown suicide bomber – again, after he travelled to Daesh-held territory in Syria.
The reality is that we have counter extremism work to do here, the need for regional diplomacy at the Vienna talks, and counter finance policies, but ultimately we are facing a real and genuine conflict. we already prosecute this action in Iraq. Isil do not recognise these borders. Neither should we.
Boris full article is here:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/12023796/Bombing-Syria-is-not-the-whole-solution-but-its-a-good-start.html