Asked by: Lord Godson (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the risk of legal challenges when relying on the provision in Article 21 of the Cluster Munitions Convention allowing the United Kingdom to fight alongside states that are not party to that Convention.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Article 21 of the Cluster Munitions Convention allows for co-operation between States Parties and non-State Parties. The UK's interpretation of Article 21 is clear. UK personnel are not prohibited from military cooperation and operations with non-States Parties which may engage in activities prohibited to a State Party, but the use, production or transfer of cluster munitions remains prohibited in all circumstances for UK personnel as does the express request for the use of cluster munitions where the choice of munitions used is within the UK's exclusive control. This position is enshrined in UK law by the 'Cluster Munitions (Prohibitions) Act 2010', establishing criminal offences to enforce the prohibitions, while providing a defence for international military operations or co-operation activities. We also recognise our obligations under Article 21 to discourage States not party from using cluster munitions.
As Baroness Chapman laid out at the House of Lords debate on 3 April regarding Landmines and Cluster Munitions, the UK remains a committed State Party to the Convention on Cluster Munitions. The UK continues to discourage the use of cluster munitions and further calls on all non-State Parties to ratify and accede to the Convention. Nevertheless, we have a long history of operating alongside states with different legal obligations whilst adhering to and promoting our own.
Asked by: Lord Godson (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the case of Majeed al-Zeer, a British citizen resident in Germany, whom the US has designated a Hamas fundraiser; whether he is registered as a director of the Palestinian Return Centre; and if so, what impact the US designation has on his status as director.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We do not comment on individual cases. The UK continues to work closely with our partners to identify further opportunities to disrupt Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad's financial networks, including cutting off access to funding being used to carry out atrocities. This work is ongoing, alongside our work to reach a long-term political solution so that Israelis and Palestinians can live in peace.
Asked by: Lord Godson (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have granted the war crimes team within the Metropolitan Police Service a general power proactively to investigate alleged war crimes in the Occupied Territories, or whether that team only investigates such allegations following specific requests by the International Criminal Court in accordance with the International Criminal Courts Act 2001.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Counter Terrorism Policing (CTP) War Crimes Team, hosted by SO15, is a small team that has national responsibility for investigating war crimes and crimes against humanity. It is funded directly by CTP and operates across the UK. The CTP War Crimes Team, which is hosted within the Met's Counter Terrorism Command, has received around 170 referrals relating to the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict since 7 October. It would not be appropriate to comment on the specific nature of each and every referral, or the referrer, but each case is reviewed in line with War Crimes/Crimes Against Humanity Referral Guidelines, jointly agreed by police and the Crown Prosecution Service. The operational independence of policing is integral to this process. At this time, there is no UK-based investigation into any matters relating to this particular conflict.
Asked by: Lord Godson (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how much the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office has spent on the Issues in Countering Terrorism course by the Centre for Defence Studies at King's College London in the last 12 months, and on what dates the training has taken place.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Lord Chamberlain (HM Household)
The Issues in Countering Terrorism course, delivered by King's College London, was held four times in 2023: 28th February to 2nd March; 28th to 30th March; 18th, 19th and 21st September; and 18th to 20th December. The FCDO has spent £109,583.68 on those courses in total, with 32 people attending each course. The course is administered through a Cabinet Office contract.
Asked by: Lord Godson (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will place in the Library of the House a copy of the different presentations given to civil servants on the Issues in Countering Terrorism course by the Centre for Defence Studies at King's College London, redacted as necessary for national security and public safety.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Lord Chamberlain (HM Household)
The FCDO does not own the Intellectual Property Rights for the presentations given on the course and cannot place them in the Library of the House.