Asked by: Lord McInnes of Kilwinning (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 20 February (HL2204), whether they intend to apply further conditions to funding provided to the government of Iraq to prevent this funding being funnelled to other groups, including Kata'ib Hezbollah.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Thorough due diligence assessment of all funding is carried out and the FCDO ensures partners have procedures in place to manage the main risks of aid diversion from activities it funds, including specific controls to ensure that assistance goes direct to the intended beneficiaries.
Asked by: Lord McInnes of Kilwinning (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 20 February (HL2204), what methods and tactics they have at their disposal when hostages are held by non-state actors within the territory of another state, such as the case of Elizabeth Tsurkov in Iraq; and what further steps they will take to facilitate her release.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is concerned over the kidnapping of Israeli-Russian dual national Elizabeth Tsurkov. The Government of Iraq opened an investigation into her kidnapping last year and we await the findings. Those suspected of criminal responsibility for her kidnapping should be brought to justice in fair trials. However, as Elizabeth Tsurkov is not a British citizen, we are not in a position to offer direct consular assistance.
Asked by: Lord McInnes of Kilwinning (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 20 February (HL2204), what processes and safeguards are in place to ensure that UK funding to the government of Iraq is not channelled to the Popular Mobilisation Forces and affiliated organisations such as Kata'ib Hezbollah.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Thorough due diligence assessment of all funding is carried out and the FCDO ensures partners have procedures in place to manage the main risks of aid diversion from activities it funds, including specific controls to ensure that assistance goes direct to the intended beneficiaries.
Asked by: Lord McInnes of Kilwinning (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Azerbaijan concerning the protection of the cultural heritage of Nagorno-Karabakh.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The preservation of religious and cultural sites in the region is an important issue and we take seriously reports of the destruction of churches or other sites of religious significance. We are aware of allegations from both Armenia and Azerbaijan that cultural and religious sites have been deliberately damaged over the course of the conflict. The British Embassy in Baku has raised the topic of religious and cultural destruction with the Azerbaijani government consistently and at senior level.