Asked by: Jack Lopresti (Conservative - Filton and Bradley Stoke)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations he has made to the Iraqi government on (a) the recent deaths of Kurds in Kirkuk and (b) potential mediation by the United Nations.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK regularly engages with leaders of Federal Iraq and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), including during the recent visit of the Security Minister, Tom Tughendhat in August. Following the recent incident in Kirkuk the British Embassy in Iraq has met a range of Iraqi counterparts and continues to encourage cooperation between Baghdad and Erbil to resolve outstanding issues. The UK supports all efforts to ensure a secure, stable, and thriving KRI exists within a peaceful and prosperous Iraq.
Asked by: Jack Lopresti (Conservative - Filton and Bradley Stoke)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the role of Shia militia groups in recent disturbances in Kirkuk.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK regularly engages with leaders of Federal Iraq and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), including during the recent visit of the Security Minister, Tom Tughendhat in August. Following the recent incident in Kirkuk the British Embassy in Iraq has met a range of Iraqi counterparts and continues to encourage cooperation between Baghdad and Erbil to resolve outstanding issues. The UK supports all efforts to ensure a secure, stable, and thriving KRI exists within a peaceful and prosperous Iraq.
Asked by: Jack Lopresti (Conservative - Filton and Bradley Stoke)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made a recent assessment of whether the oil pipeline between the Kurdistan Region in Iraq and Turkey will be re-opened.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK supports a secure, stable, and thriving Kurdistan Region in Iraq (KRI) within a peaceful and prosperous Iraq. Through our diplomatic engagements, we continue to encourage all parties to work together to find a satisfactory and speedy resolution, noting the importance of oil exports via the pipeline to the health of the economy of the KRI and to Iraq.
It would not be appropriate, given the ongoing negotiations between the governments of Iraq and Turkey regarding the pipeline, for HMG to speculate on any timelines for its reopening.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool, Walton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the human rights situation in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
We continue to monitor the human rights situation in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Journalists and political activists continue to face intimidation and indefinite detention, and conservative norms and discriminatory laws harm women and girls and the LGBT+ community.
The UK remains committed to pressing the case for improvements in the human rights situation in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and raises these issues regularly with senior figures.
Asked by: Hilary Benn (Labour - Leeds Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 8 June 2023 to Question 187387 on Iraq: Political Prisoners, whether he plans to make further representations to the Kurdistan regional government in Iraq following the extension to the prison sentence of journalist Sherwan Sherwani.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The UK Government remains committed to pressing the case for improvements in the human rights situation in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) and to advocating for human rights for all, including in relation to freedom of expression and the freedom for journalists to do their jobs free from harm.
The UK Government, through our Consulate General in Erbil, takes a close interest in the treatment of journalists and human rights activists in the KRI, and they are monitoring the case of Mr Sherwani.
We have always been clear that journalists and political activists should be free to operate without undue interference from security forces or fear of indefinite detention.
Asked by: Jack Lopresti (Conservative - Filton and Bradley Stoke)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many service personnel are deployed in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq; and on what duties.
Answered by James Heappey
As of 13 June 2023 there were 154 UK Service personnel deployed to the Kurdistan region of Iraq. Those personnel are deployed under Op SHADER and provide mobility support and force protection to the Counter-DAESH coalition activity under Operation Inherent Resolve.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions his Department has had with Kurdish authorities on the scheduling of parliamentary elections in the Kurdish region of Iraq.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government supports a democratic Kurdistan Region within a peaceful and prosperous Iraq. Parliamentary elections in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) were due in October 2022, and we continue to press the Kurdistan Regional Government to reschedule these elections to take place as soon as possible. The Minister of State for the Middle East, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon visited Iraq, including the KRI, in March and emphasised to senior figures in the Kurdistan Regional Government the importance the UK places on democracy in the KRI. Our Ambassador in Baghdad and Consul General in Erbil continue to raise this issue in public and private, most recently in meetings with the leaders of political parties, the President, Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister in May.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions his Department has had with Kurdish authorities on the release of (a) Sherwan Sherwani, (b) Guhdar Zebari and (c) other political prisoners in the Kurdish region of Iraq.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is committed to pressing the case for improvements in the human rights situation in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), and we consistently raise our issues about restrictions on freedom of expression, in particular the conviction and sentencing of journalists and political activists. During his visit to the KRI in March the Minister for the Middle East, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon raised concerns over restrictions on media freedom with senior figures in the Kurdistan Regional Government. Our Ambassador in Baghdad, and our Consul General in Erbil, also raise these issues regularly with senior figures in the Kurdistan Regional Government, including the Prime Minister and President, and meet Kurdish journalists and members of civil society to discuss their concerns.
Asked by: Lord Hylton (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the number, and (2) the humanitarian situation, of refugees, including Yazidis, who remain in camps in (a) the autonomous region of north-east Syria, and (b) Kurdistan, following the defeat of ISIS; and what steps they are taking to expedite their return home.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK remains committed to the safety and security of refugees, including Yazidis in North-East Syria and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Due to the shifting circumstances on the ground we are not in a position to make an accurate estimate of their number. When appropriate we raise the troubling humanitarian situation in refugee camps with the relevant authorities. Durable solutions must be pursued for displaced populations, including return, relocation, or local integration, where appropriate. We regularly raise this with the relevant authorities, the Iraq Government, UN bodies, international partners and our development programming in Iraq will support these efforts.
Asked by: Alexander Stafford (Conservative - Rother Valley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of bilateral relations between the UK and the Kurdistan Region in Iraq.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK remains committed to strong relations with the Kurdistan Regional Government and Federal Government of Iraq and we want to see a strong and successful Kurdistan region within a thriving Iraq. We have a close and strategic partnership with the Kurdish Regional Government who continue to be a close ally in the fight against Daesh. In April 2022, the Prime Minister of the Kurdish Region of Iraq, Masrour Barzani, came to the UK on an official visit, meeting with the Prime Minister, Foreign Secretary and other Cabinet Ministers.