LONDON (AP) - British Prime Minister Theresa May has rejected opposition calls for a law requiring Parliament's approval to commit U.K. forces to military action.
Britain, along with the United States and France, launched airstrikes on Saturday against targets in Syria over a reported chemical weapons attack.
Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn accused May of showing a "flagrant disregard" for Parliament by not seeking lawmakers' approval first.
But May said Corbyn's demand for a War Powers Act to prevent the government from acting alone "would seriously compromise our national security, our national interests, and the lives of British citizens at home and abroad" by making rapid, small-scale strikes like those taken in Syria impossible.
Corbyn secured an emergency debate on the Syria strikes Tuesday, but it didn't include a significant vote on the issue.
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(PA via AP). Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn speaking after Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May's statement to MPs in the House of Commons in London, Monday April 16, 2018 over her decision to launch air strikes against Syria. British Prime Minister There...
(Daniel Leal-Olivas/pool via AP). Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May hosts a meeting with leaders and representatives of Caribbean countries, inside 10 Downing Street in central London, Tuesday April 17, 2017, on the sidelines of the Commonwealth Hea...