Syria airstrikes approved by MPs

"As announced at our protest on Saturday, Bristol Stop the War are calling people back to the streets - this time in much greater numbers to make it clear where BRISTOL stands!!

Bring your placards - "Not In Our Name"/"Don't Bomb Syria"

We say NO to bombing! NO to further allied military escalation in Syria and the further chaos, destruction & loss innocent lives this will cost.

We demand that our government prioritises peaceful diplomatic & political negotiations to halt the Syrian civil war, puts pressure on the Turkish authorities to stop allowing its borders to be used for the supply of arms and fighters into Syria, and ends all funding and arms sales to regimes in the region who are supporting ISIL in any way.

Our movement will continue to mobilise on a mass scale as long as the government proceeds with its current military agenda for Syria and ignores the necessary steps above for allowing peace and a genuine chance of a self-determining future in the country."

Many constituents have expressed their fears that intervention in Syria would significantly increase the risk of attacks on the UK.

Of course, the security of British citizens is of paramount importance to me as an MP, but it is clear that ISIL and similar groups already pose a substantial threat to us all. The horrific attacks in Paris last month are a reminder of this.

It could easily have taken place on British soil. And of course, we should not forget the deaths of 30 British holidaymakers in Tunisia earlier this year. British intelligence agencies have revealed that seven ISIL plots targeting Britain have been foiled in the last year alone, and that there is a clear connection between the threats we face and ISIL headquarters in Raqqa.

It should also be noted that we are already involved in action against ISIL in Iraq, and are providing support to other countries for action against ISIL in Syria.