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Britain joining offensive air operations against Daesh in Syria may only be a 'relatively minor extension,' according to former Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett, but the Commons debate to endorse it was a mammoth, emotional and historic event. It's politically important in assisting allies in need and rescuing liberal intervention from its morass. RAF jets blasted Daesh oil fields soon after the vote.
The government won two-thirds of lawmakers with just seven Conservative rebels, albeit including the Chairman of the Defence Select Committee. Labour disagreements were larger with about a third of its MPs and the shadow cabinet backing the government rather than their leader. This was not a simple left-right Labour divide. Some Blairites refused to back the government and expressed doubts about the viability of the strategy. There should also be more recognition that continued sectarian rule by Baghdad and Damascus means Sunnis are less likely to break with Daesh.
About a hundred thousand words were spoken in the ten-hour debate. Kurds were praised by many and Scottish National Party Foreign Affairs spokesperson, Alex Salmond said the Peshmerga, 'probably our only reliable ally across the region,' have pushed back Daesh but 'why have we not given the Peshmerga heavy armour and heavy weapons, and why do they have to dominate the road between Mosul and Raqqa using only machine guns?'
But the highlight of the debate was the bravura summing up by shadow Foreign Secretary, Hilary Benn, which swayed some Labour MPs. It rebutted Labour Leader Jeremy Corbyn's opening case against the airstrikes and graphically highlighted the struggle for Labour's soul. It was also poignant because Benn is the son of veteran left-winger Tony Benn, whose protege is Corbyn.
Hilary Benn passionately highlighted the clear and present threat from Daesh, solidarity with its victims, and the backing of a clear and unambiguous UN resolution. He destroyed the argument that airstrikes had achieved nothing. As for the reality of moderate Sunni fighters in Syria he argued that, 'the longer we leave it to take action, the longer Daesh will have to decrease that number.'
He also quoted Karwan Jamal Tahir, KRG High Representative in London: “Last June, Daesh captured one third of Iraq overnight and a few months later attacked the Kurdistan Region. Swift airstrikes by Britain, America and France and the actions of our own Peshmerga saved us... We now have a border of 650 miles with Daesh. We have pushed them back and recently captured Sinjar ...Again Western airstrikes were vital. But the old border between Iraq and Syria does not exist. Daesh fighters come and go across this fictional boundary.” Benn said this is the argument for treating the two countries as one if we are serious about defeating Daesh. Benn powerfully appealed to Labour's anti-fascist and internationalist legacy.
In contrast to its failure two years ago to win the parliamentary debate about joining action to punish Assad for using chemical weapons, the government this time devised a convincing package of measures and Benn bolstered it with great verve. Yes, the situation is complex but Benn rightly said there are rarely, if ever, perfect circumstances in which to deploy military force.
Anti-imperialists who oppose all Western military action are like the stopped clock - only accidentally correct and an unreliable guide. The importance of Benn locating the debate in the traditions of anti-fascism is that it allows legitimate debate of difficult realities rather than the unchanging dogmas of anti-imperialism. The poisonous perspectives and practices of the Stop the War Coalition are now also coming into greater focus. It has excluded Syrian voices that back Western military action. Its former leader, Corbyn refused to say if he still opposes airstrikes in Iraq where they have clearly been vital.
MPs found the decision on airstrikes in Syria very difficult but applied themselves to the issues and all voted honourably. Some now face intimidation or worse and a line against that needs to be enforced. MPs are representatives elected to exercise judgement and then face the voters. They are not delegates for what may or may not be a majority viewpoint at any one time, and certainly not a noisy and nasty minority view.
Britain has been almost completely absent from Syrian skies for over a year but can now play a fuller part in a long struggle to destroy fascism and make sure it does not re-emerge in a new form. The debate has also put the Kurds centre-stage but they and their friends should do more to ensure they are not ignored once Daesh is gone.
- Hilary Benn's speech can be viewed here: http://www.theguardian.com/politics/video/2015/dec/03/hilary-benn-airstrikes-vote-speech-full-must-confront-isis-evil-video
* Gary Kent is the director of All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG). He writes this column for Rudaw in a personal capacity. The address for the all-party group is appgkurdistan@gmail.com The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rudaw.
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