Threat to British lives ‘would trigger immediate UK air strikes against IS’

DAVID Cameron yesterday pledged to order ‘immediate’ air strikes against Islamic State anywhere if there is an imminent threat to British lives.

The Prime Minister indicated his willingness to use military action in Libya and Syria as he said the international community is stepping up efforts to ‘put the squeeze’ on the terror group.

Mr Cameron said although a military campaign is not being proposed by the UK against IS targets in Libya, he would be prepared to act if it was necessary in an emergency.

‘If there is a threat to Britain, to our people, our streets, and we are able to stop it by taking immediate action against that threat – I’m the British Prime Minister,’ he said. ‘I would always want to try to take that action and that’s the case whether that problem is emanating from Libya, from Syria or anywhere else.’ Mr Cameron said such action would be ‘legal, right and proper’.

Islamic State’s activities in Libya have come under the spotlight after reports the gunman in the Tunisian beach massacre trained at a terror camp there.

Mr Cameron added that he wanted to work with allies to establish a stable government in the North African country. ‘We should be working and are working with other partners to help the new Libyan government as it gets formed. So that’s helping with advice and support and capacity-building in their government departments,’ he said.

‘The problem in Libya has been they haven’t had a government that has been able to deliver, and that should be our focus.

‘That is why, for instance, we tried helping with training military personnel, so we should go on doing all of these things.’ His pledge to take military action comes even though Britain has so far been reluctant to take part in strikes against IS in Syria.

Yesterday, after Mr Cameron held talks with Indonesian president Joko Widodo in Jakarta, they announced agreement on a package of measures to counter the ‘shared enemy’ of IS.

The Prime Minister promised British help to increase security at airports in Bali and Jakarta and around 50 Indonesian police officers will be trained in counter-terrorism techniques in the UK.

Speaking at the presidential palace in Jakarta, Mr Cameron said IS, also known as Isil, was an ‘evil threat’ to both nations.

Earlier, Mr Cameron said he had held talks with Turkish prime minister Ahmet Davutoglu at the weekend and he welcomed Ankara’s decision to take action against IS.

He added: ‘I think it’s good that Turkey is stepping up its action against Isil and Isil targets. I think there is more we can do in terms of co-operation on counter-terrorism, particularly stopping foreign fighters from going through Turkey into Syria.

‘I think, frankly, what’s happening is the pace is quickening and the pressure is growing on Isil.

‘You see that from what the Turks are doing but also Britain is keeping up the pace as well in terms of what we are doing in Iraq.

‘We are all working very closely together to put the squeeze on Isil and to restrict what it does.’

His trip to South-East Asia is predominantly a trade mission but he is also using it to raise the issue of IS as its support has been growing in the region.

Around 500 people from Indonesia – which has the world’s largest Muslim population – and 200 from Malaysia are thought to have joined IS in Iraq and Syria.