BRITISH Prime Minister David Cameron is facing calls to withdraw comments which likened opponents of airstrikes to "terrorist sympathisers".
As the Conservative leader set out his case at Westminster on Wednesday for launching military action against IS, he repeatedly refused to apologise for the controversial remarks.
On Tuesday ahead of the debate on military action in Syria, Mr Cameron told Conservative MPs not to side with Labour leader "Jeremy Corbyn and a bunch of terrorist sympathisers".
Mr Cameron remained silent as Mr Corbyn yesterday offered him the chance to apologise, having earlier insisted that no-one was arguing about the need to tackle terrorism, with the prime minister saying MPs should "move on".
His original comments drew widespread criticism, with SDLP leader Colum Eastwood MLA describing them as "appalling, inaccurate and offensive in the extreme".
The Foyle MLA said opposing military action in Syria was "not sympathy with terrorists" but part of the lesson learned from decades of conflict.
"To describe people like Mark Durkan, Margaret Ritchie and Alasdair McDonnell as ‘terrorist sympathisers’ is absolutely galling," Mr Eastwood said.
"These are people who stood strongly against violence for over forty years at great personal risk while people like David Cameron enjoyed a life of privilege. His comments are totally despicable and he should withdraw them immediately."
