The Stop the War Coalition has called for a demonstration tomorrow between 5-7pm at Downing Street to oppose any British military involvement in Syria.
The Coalition has been at the forefront of protesting against Britain’s foreign wars over the past decade or more, especially in Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya.
A statement on their website read: “Britain, France and the US are committing to another disastrous military intervention. Apart from the inevitable casualties, any attack on Syria can only inflame an already disastrous civil war and would risk pulling in regional powers further.
“Most people in this country have learnt from the disasters of Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya. According to a Telegraph/YouGuv poll on Sunday only 9% of the British public would support troops being sent to Syria, and only 16% support sending more arms to the region. Our politicians however have learnt nothing.
“We need the maximum level of protest to stop them plunging us in to yet another catastrophic war.”
Military action
The prospect of Britain joining military action increased over the past few days after Britain, the US and France accused President Bashar al Assad of carrying out a chemical weapons attack on Damascus which killed hundreds of people.
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The Western allies say they have undeniable evidence that Assad’s forces conducted the attack which they say is a red line triggering intervention. They say that only the government had the capacity to commit the atrocity and they have already proved their brutality in two years of civil war.
On the other hand the Syrian authorities deny the accusations and say that the rebels or their supporters most likely conducted the attack in order to trigger a foreign invasion that would topple Bashar.
Moreover, any action in Syria would be deeply unpopular with a war-weary public and would also potentially be tough to get through a parliamentary vote, which the Prime Minister may choose to bypass.
It is also uncertain how British Muslims feel about the prospect of intervention. While most will probably oppose it, a substantial minority may well back it willingly or reluctantly in the hope that it unseats the Syrian regime.
