UK set to bomb IS tonight in Syria as vote passed

British war planes are poised to begin a bombing campaign in Syria tonight after MPs overwhelmingly backed military action against Islamic State.

RAF jets and drones are ready to launch air strikes “very quickly” and raids on the jihadist terror group could begin within 24 hours, foreign secretary Philip Hammond said.

MPs voted by 397 to 223 in favour of extending British action to quash IS from Iraq into its Syrian strongholds, a majority of 174.

David Cameron told the Commons the “women-raping, Muslim-murdering, medieval monsters” of IS were “plotting to kill us and to radicalise our children right now” as he laid out his case for intervention at the start of more than 10 hours of debate.

But critics of the plan disputed claims that 70,000 moderate fighters would be able to take on IS on the ground.

RAF Tornado GR4s, which carry a range of munitions including Paveway IV guided bombs and precision guided Brimstone missiles, based at the Akrotiri base in Cyprus, are expected to carry out the first sorties against the extremists.

Hammond told Sky News: “We are very pleased that a significant number of Labour MPs have voted with the Government tonight so we have got a clear majority across the House of Commons in support of the action that we are now going to be taking to degrade this evil terrorist organisation.

“Britain is safer tonight because of the decision that the House of Commons has taken.”

While the often fractious debate continued inside the House of Commons, anti-war protesters took to the streets outside chanting “David Cameron, shame on you”, and “Don’t bomb Syria”.

Loud boos erupted from the crowd which had gathered outside parliament to hear the outcome of the vote.

Grace Tennant, 20, a student from Birmingham, said: “It is about human lives. It’s a moral argument. Britain won’t be safer because of this, we’ll become less safe.”

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn insisted Cameron’s arguments for military action “simply do not stack up” and warned air strikes would “almost inevitably lead to the deaths of innocents”.

The vote left Labour bitterly divided with MPs supporting the Government claiming they have faced an intense campaign of bullying and intimidation from some party members.

Pacifist Corby opposes military action but was forced to offer his MPs a free vote, and allowed Hilary Benn to wrap up the debate with a speech in support of air strikes in a messy compromise to stop the party from falling apart.

In astonishing scenes, the shadow foreign secretary gave an impassioned speech directly challenging his leader Corbyn, who sat beside him watching on, and won rousing cheers from across the house.

He told Labour MPs “we never have and we never should walk by on the other side of the road.

“But I say the threat is now and there are rarely, if ever, perfect circumstances in which to deploy military forces.”

Cameron said the Joint Intelligence Committee and MI5 both assessed the UK was among IS’s “top tier” targets, while the Paris atrocities revealed the extent to which attacks in Europe were now being planned by “the head of the snake” in the group’s HQ in Raqqa, Syria.