Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what estimate his Department has made of the number of (a) British, (b) British born and (c) dual nationals who were killed in the terrorist attacks in Israel on 7 October 2023.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign Commonwealth and Development office have been informed of the deaths of 15 British nationals killed in the terrorist attacks in Israel on 7 October 2023.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what (a) diplomatic, (b) operational and (c) other steps his Department is taking to help secure the release of British citizens being held hostage in Gaza.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Our full sympathies are with families affected by the horrific terrorist attacks committed by Hamas. Since the attacks on 7 October, we have worked tirelessly to support the British people affected. Intensive diplomatic efforts are ongoing with the Qataris, Israelis and others to secure the release of all hostages. We will keep working until all the hostages are freed and returned to their families. We are not commenting on individual cases. The Prime Minister and the Foreign Secretary have met with the family members of hostages to directly hear their concerns both in Israel and in the UK and will continue to do so.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what information his Department holds on the number of (a) British, (b) British born and (c) British dual nationals who were kidnapped in Israel on 7 October 2023.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We have been working with partners across the region to secure the release of all hostages, including British nationals. We are providing consular assistance to the families of British national hostages. Due to the sensitive nature of these cases, we do not provide further details.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what estimate his Department has made of the number of executions that have occurred in Iran in the last 12 months.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The opaque nature of Iran's judicial system prevents us from knowing exactly how many executions have taken place. However, Iranian human rights groups estimate that over 700 people have been executed this year, marking a concerning escalation. The UK Government opposes the death penalty in all circumstances in all countries, especially when imposed upon minors. We have made clear to Iran, both in public and privately, our opposition to the use of the death penalty. We co-sponsored the Iran Human Rights Resolution at the 78th UN General Assembly, calling for an immediate moratorium on executions with a view to eventually abolishing the death penalty.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what information his Department holds on the nationalities of people executed in Iran in the last 12 months.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government opposes the death penalty in all circumstances in every country, including Iran. The opaque nature of Iran's judicial system makes it difficult to gather detail on all executions that have taken place. The execution of British-Iranian national Alireza Akbari in January demonstrated the Iranian authority's complete disregard for human life. Similarly, their execution of Swedish-Iranian national Habib Chaab in May was an unacceptable politically motivated act. We will never accept Iran's use of the death penalty, or its practice of unfairly detaining foreign nationals, and we will continue to work with partners to hold Iran to account.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he has had recent discussions with his Israeli counterpart on CCTV footage of hostages held by Hamas in Shifa Hospital.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We cannot provide a running commentary on intelligence concerning hostage negotiations as they are highly sensitive and ongoing, but we continue to engage closely with international partners to secure the release of hostages, including the US, Qatar, Egypt, Israel, and others. The Foreign Secretary visited Israel on 23 November and met Prime Minister Netanyahu, his counterpart Foreign Minister Cohen and other key interlocutors to discuss the Israel/Gaza conflict and our shared goal of releasing all hostages.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps his Department has taken to ensure that money repaid to Iran for the non-delivery of military hardware was spent on humanitarian purposes.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The International Military Services (IMS) debt was settled in full compliance with UK and international sanctions and all legal obligations. Whilst the arrangement remains commercially confidential, HMG can confirm that the funds were ring-fenced solely for humanitarian purposes and mechanisms were put in place to ensure this was delivered.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will make an estimate of the number of Hamas terrorists that have been killed in Gaza since 7 October 2023.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government has not made an official estimate of the number of Hamas terrorists killed in Gaza since 7 October 2023. We continue to engage closely with the Government of Israel, the Palestinian Authority, and international and regional partners on the conflict.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will make an assessment of the implications for (a) his policies and (b) the Falkland Islands of the election of Javier Milei as the President of Argentina.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I [Minister Rutley] join the Foreign Secretary in congratulating President-elect Javier Milei on his election victory. As fellow G20 members, we look forward to developing a stronger and more constructive relationship. The UK and Argentina have worked well together on many shared priorities, among them climate change, science and innovation and human rights, and we are keen to develop and improve such collaboration with President-elect Milei's administration.
The UK has no doubt about its sovereignty over the Falkland Islands, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, and is committed to proactively upholding the Falkland Islanders' rights, including their right of self-determination.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of the expansion of illegal settlements in the occupied region of Cyprus.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
Property is one of the most complex and sensitive subjects caught up in the Cyprus Problem. Ultimately, the most effective way to resolve the issues arising from the events of 1974, including property claims, is through the UN-facilitated talks aimed at reuniting Cyprus on the basis of a just and lasting settlement. The UK continues to support the UN-led process and encourage the two sides to return to negotiations.