Ivory Coast (Humanitarian Situation) Debate
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Anas Sarwar
Main Page: Anas Sarwar (Labour - Glasgow Central)Department Debates - View all Anas Sarwar's debates with the Department for International Development
Ivory Coast (Humanitarian Situation)
Anas Sarwar Excerpts(13 years, 1 month ago)
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Mr O’Brien
The hon. Gentleman raises an important issue. We believe that about 80 British citizens would be involved, and there are, indeed, contingency plans in place for their safe return if that becomes necessary.
Anas Sarwar (Glasgow Central) (Lab)
I welcome the Government’s actions in providing humanitarian assistance to the region. Comparisons will inevitably be drawn with the situation in Libya. What assessment has been made of the number of civilian lives that have been lost in Ivory Coast, and what efforts are we and our international partners making to ensure we protect civilians from another brutal leader refusing to leave?
Mr O'Brien
The latest information we have is that about 500 civilians have so far lost their lives in Côte d’Ivoire, but that is very much an estimate—as the hon. Gentleman can imagine, reliable information is extremely hard to come by. All possible political and diplomatic processes are under way, and have been under way—we have been deeply engaged in trying to help and co-ordinate efforts to support that since the leadership crisis first arose in December. It is vital that we work down that track. Of course we do not want to have to take other measures, and it is extremely helpful that the UN Security Council passed resolution 1975 last night.