Hackney MPs vote against air strikes against ISIS in Syria

Take off: RAF jets flew their first mission in Syria hours after Parliament voted in favour of extending air strikes. Photograph: MOD

Hackney’s MPs Diane Abbott and Meg Hillier were last night thwarted in their opposition to British air strikes in Syria, as the House of Commons voted in favour of “military action, specifically airstrikes, exclusively against ISIL in Syria“.

The government motion was passed 397 to 223 after a 10-hour debate in the House of Commons.

Hours later four Tornados from RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus carried out the first offensive operation against ISIS terrorist targets inside Syria.

Meg Hillier, Labour MP for Hackney South and Shoreditch, voted against air strikes in Syria.

“My concerns about the weakness of the ground forces was the main reason I opposed the air strikes and voted against the Government,” Ms Hillier told the Hackney Citizen.

She was unconvinced the ground forces would be able to secure the territory taken over by ISIS once it had been bombed.

“The Prime Minister highlighted the 70,000 militia on the ground in Syria who had indicated a willingness to work with other countries to deliver a long lasting peace in Syria.

“So much of the plan for the future of the region was reliant on these disparate groups, including some extremists. In the end I was not convinced there was enough evidence that this would be a credible force.

Tragic decision

In the run up to the vote Ms Abbott, Labour MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington, was outspoken in her criticism of the motion put forward by Prime Minister David Cameron to extend the UK’s airstrikes to include Syria, as well as Iraq, as part of counter-ISIS coalition operations.

Last night she expressed on Twitter her disappointment at the outcome of the vote:

Tragic decision tonight. Further downward spiral in cycle of violence in Middle East #syriaairstrikes pic.twitter.com/9dL8YBrYsP

— Diane Abbott MP (@HackneyAbbott) December 2, 2015

Ms Abbott has been asked for comment.

More to follow.