MPs voted by 397 to 223 in favour for the RAF to start bombing the so-called Islamic State (IS) in Syria.
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They were followed less than an hour later by two more jets.
RAF Marham Tornados could conduct their first sorties into Syria this morning after MPs gave the extension of air strikes their backing.
Cameron said pursuing air strikes in Syria would not increase the likelihood of militant attacks on Britain because it was already in “the top tier of countries on the IS (Islamic State) target list”. Late Wednesday night, after more than 10 hours of debate, the UK Parliament widened the target area to cover Isis bases in Syria.
GR4 Tornados carrying Paveway IV bombs and LITENING pod reconnaissance equipment took off from RAF Akrotiri on Cyprus tonight.
Prime Minister David Cameron said MPs took the “right decision to keep the United Kingdom safe”. The base has been used in recent months as a launchpad for British airstrikes on militant targets in Iraq.
Prime Minister David Cameron said high-precision, laser-guided Brimstone missiles attached to the Tornado GR4 bombers would help to make a real difference by hitting the de facto Islamic State capital of Raqqa and its oil-trading business. Germany’s parliament is also expected to vote on Friday (4 December) in favour of joining the US-led campaign against Isis.
The UK and Russian Federation are “partners” in the fight against IS but Vladimir Putin could end the “madness” of the Syrian civil war at the hands of Bashar Assad by calling the brutal dictator and telling him to go, he said.
But it is a blow to the leader of Britain’s main opposition Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn, who was against launching the air strikes. It is seeking to provide only military support for air strikes and not actually participate in the strikes.
Defence sources confirmed the two fighter bombers had headed for the Syria and Iraq region but said the warplanes were deployed as part of the “ongoing operation”.
Corbyn, a veteran anti-war campaigner who argued the bombing would be ineffective and kill civilians, was forced to allow his MPs to vote according to their conscience in order to quell a rebellion in his party over the military action.
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Britain, a former colonial power, retains two sovereign military bases in Cyprus.
