May thanks troops for helping to ‘crush’ ISIS

THERESA May yesterday thanked British troops for helping to ‘crush’ Islamic State’s so-called caliphate.

Speaking to troops at RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus, the Prime Minister said the terror group no longer held significant territory in Iraq and Syria.

She thanked RAF personnel for their efforts in protecting British citizens at home, adding: ‘You are quite simply the pride of our nation.’

Mrs May visited the base, which carries out deadly bombing raids on jihadists, on the last day of a whistlestop tour of Europe. In a speech to around 100 troops, she said: ‘Just three years ago Daesh [IS] declared a caliphate in Iraq and Syria, a safe haven in which to carry out the most barbaric acts and ... to plot murder on our streets at home.

‘But today, thanks in very large part to your efforts, the so-called caliphate has been crushed and no longer holds significant territory.’