British Embassy in Damascus

Lord Alton of Liverpool Excerpts

Tuesday 2nd December 2025 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)]

We are, of course, and we take our counterterrorism work in Syria and elsewhere incredibly seriously. One of the best things we can do for Syria and the wider region is to do everything we can to make sure that Syria has a stable Government with inclusive politics, and that the improvements we are seeing continue. This is the best chance we have had for Syria in a very long time, and we need to work collaboratively with our partners and allies on the threats the noble Lord refers to, as he would expect. But vital to this is maintaining a secure and stable Government in Syria.

[Lord Alton of Liverpool (CB)]

My Lords, in the context of the rise of ISIS again in Somalia and jihadism throughout the region, will the noble Baroness say something about the position of minorities in Syria, who have suffered genocide in the past? Recent attacks on Alawites and Druze in particular should give cause for concern. Will she make it a priority of our diplomatic presence in Damascus that we champion the position of the minorities, guaranteeing the real long-term stability of that country?

[Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)]

That is a very important point. We were deeply concerned, as I know Members were across this House, about some of the events we saw last summer, particularly the targeting of the Alawite and Druze communities, as the noble Lord says. We are very clear with the Government in Syria about our commitment to freedom of religion or belief, and that we expect the new Government to be inclusive and representative and to take actions we would all expect them to take when we see breaches and when things occur that need to be responded to. The Government need to take a leading role in making sure that this sort of violence and victimisation is not allowed to persist in Syria.