Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of trends in the level of discrimination against members of the Baha’i faith by Houthi authorities in Yemen; and what representations he has made to the (a) Houthi authorities and the government of Iran on the persecution of the Baha’i.

The UK strongly condemns the mistreatment of Baha’is who are being persecuted for their religious beliefs in areas under the control of the Houthis. We are working closely with our partners to raise these concerns directly with the Houthi authorities and urge the release of detained individuals. We continue to follow the treatment of the Baha’is in Yemen closely, including through meeting their representatives in the UK and lobbying the relevant authorities. We continue to call on the parties to the conflict for the human rights of all Yemenis to be respected.

At the UN General Assembly in September, we brought the international community together at a UK-hosted event to shine a spotlight on Iran's human rights abuses. We will also be using Iran’s forthcoming Universal Periodic Review in November, to raise concerns about the ongoing discrimination and targeting of religious minority groups, including the Baha’i community.

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