Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to ensure families from the UK who are detained in North East Syria receive medical care, including in cases where there is a clear risk to life.
Answered by James Cleverly - Shadow Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government
The UK has no consular presence within Syria, which makes it difficult to provide direct consular assistance, but we carefully consider whether and how we can help every British national who directly seeks our assistance. The provision of medical care within camps in North East Syria is a matter for the camp authorities, but UK aid is provided to those in acute need in these camps, including British nationals. For example, in Al Hol camp, we help fund a wide range of activities including basic, life-saving healthcare, food, hygiene products, child protection and shelter, in addition to informal education support. When the population substantially increased in early 2019, UK aid provided 1,300 tents to the camp. The UK's funding is flexible and allows partners on the ground to plan for spikes in need.
Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to facilitate welfare and proof of life checks for families from Britain who are detained in north-east Syria.
Answered by James Cleverly - Shadow Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government
The UK has no consular presence within Syria from which to provide assistance. This makes it difficult to help but we take a case-by-case approach to any requests for assistance, which includes liaising with partners on the ground where feasible.
Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with the Turkish government on (a) the conflict in Northern Syria and (b) that country's policy towards YPG forces.
Answered by Wendy Morton - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Ministers and officials regularly discuss the situation in northern Syria with the Government of Turkey. The Foreign Secretary discussed international efforts on Syria with Turkish Foreign Minister Çavusoglu during in his visit to London on 8 July.
We also regularly discuss our differences of views on the YPG, which is an important part of the Syrian Democratic Forces. We acknowledge Turkey's security concerns regarding the PKK. The UK sees a clear distinction between the PKK, which we proscribed as a terrorist organisation in 2001, and the SDF, the partner force of the Global Coalition against Daesh in Syria. We pay tribute to the courage and sacrifices made by SDF in the fight against Daesh. We continue to urge the Kurdish elements of the SDF to distance themselves from the PKK and its terrorist activity. The UK also calls on all parties to the conflict in Syria to respect international law.
Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with the Turkish government on British volunteers fighting with the Peoples Protection Forces, known as the YPG.
Answered by Wendy Morton - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We have regular discussions with the Turkish authorities on the issue of stopping foreign fighters passing through Turkey to or from Syria. Since 2011, the FCO has advised against all travel to Syria. As we have made clear, where individuals travel to the region to participate in fighting and then return, they will be investigated. Any decision on whether to prosecute will be taken independently by the Crown Prosecution Service on a case by case basis.