US about to ramp up assault on IS in retaliation for beheading; will likely bomb in Syria

[Mr Khan]

Syria won't shoot at our bombers unless we start going after Assad's positions (or the positions of Assad allies like Hezbollah). The Russians have given Assad anti-aircraft missiles good enough that attacking "Syria" would be a very costly prospect, but we're not attacking "Syria", or at least not the parts controlled by the Syrian Arab Republic.