On December 2nd the House of Commons voted by an emphatic majority to let British planes bomb Islamic State (IS) in Syria as well as Iraq. It was a symbolic step, aimed at showing solidarity with allies against barbarism. Although British Tornado fighters boast highly accurate Brimstone missiles and a sophisticated intelligence-gathering pod, no one imagines that air power alone can defeat IS. The problem remains what it has been in Syria since air strikes against IS first began in September last year: the absence of competent, politically acceptable forces on the ground to work with, other than the Kurdish ypg (People's Protection Units), who seldom venture outside what they see as Kurdish territory. David Cameron was derided for claiming that there are "about 70,000 Syrian opposition fighters ...who do not belong to extremist groups" and who might be potential allies of the coalition against IS. The Kurds are not included in that count.
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