ANTI-WAR campaigners challenged Defence Secretary Michael Fallon yesterday following his call for more air strikes in Syria and warned that the action could fuel potential Isis recruits.

Mr Fallon argued it was “illogical” that British planes were able to hit extremists in Iraq but not bases across the border and suggested any evidence that last week’s massacre in Tunisia was planned in Syria would show that the Islamic State leadership in the country represented a direct threat to the British people.

When the PM obtained Commons approval for the bombing of militant positions last year, he made it clear that this was limited to Iraq.

However Mr Fallon quoted David Cameron who said in September during the debate on taking action in Iraq that there was a “strong case” for Britain to do more in Syria.

He confirmed the government would seek Commons approval before conducting air strikes there. But he added: “The exception, as the house knows, is if there was a critical British national interest at stake or the need to act to prevent humanitarian catastrophe.”

Labour strongly indicated that it would back the government’s proposal with shadow defence secretary Vernon Coaker saying that Labour stood “ready to work with the government to defeat Isis” and would “carefully consider” any proposals that the government decides to bring forward.

“We all need to be clear about what difference any action would make to our objective of defeating Isis, about the nature of any action, its objectives and indeed its legal basis.

“Any potential action must command the support of other nations in the region, including Iraq and the coalition already taking action in Syria.”

Acting Labour leader Harriet Harman also appeared to imply the party could support the proposal saying that the situation was different to that in 2013.

But a Stop the War spokesman warned against military action as it’s action that has led to more people joining Isis. He said: “The US is already bombing Syria as well as Iraq, with little success. Many argue that this bombing has helped Isis recruit. “The proposal is in response to the terrible attack in Tunisia last week, but will do nothing to stop further attacks. Support for Isis in Tunisia has grown in the past two years, largely as a result of the growth of terrorism in neighbouring Libya. That in turn dates from the British and French-led bombing of Libya in 2011 which has created a state of civil war, terrorism and misery for its people.”

Campaigns Against Nuclear Disarmament general secretary Kate Hudson said that US and British military action in the Middle East and North Africa had been “ill-conceived, leading to death and destruction for innocent civilians, and shattered states — both of which were abandoned by their attackers — where terrorists including Isis have since been able to organise.

“We bombed Isis into existence. We can’t bomb them out of existence.”