Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of recent reports that the Turkish army attacked a refugee camp in the Zaxo region of Northern Iraq on 30 August 2021 housing Yazidi refugees displaced during the ISIS genocide.

We are aware of reports of an explosion in a refugee camp in Zaxo in Northern Iraq on 30 August. Allegations of attacks against refugee camps are deeply concerning. We continue to reiterate the importance of dialogue and cooperation between Iraq and Turkey to combat terrorism, ensure regional security and protect civilians. We welcome discussions between Iraqi and Turkish Defence Ministers regarding Ankara's military operations against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), a proscribed terrorist group, in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. The Foreign Secretary discussed the stability of Iraq and the KRI with the President of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, President Nechirvan Barzani, during his visit to London on the 15-17 September.