Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations she has made to her Israeli counterpart on the violence at the funeral of Shireen Abu Akleh.
Answered by Amanda Milling - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
On 11 May, I publicly expressed my sadness upon hearing news of the tragic death of veteran Palestinian Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Aqleh, and called for a thorough investigation. The Foreign Secretary also made this clear in a statement on 12 May. We were also deeply disturbed by the scenes in Jerusalem at her funeral. Her death was a tragedy and those mourning must be treated with respect and dignity. We call for urgent steps to de-escalate tensions and for restraint in the use of force. The UK Ambassador to Israel has reiterated the importance of an investigation with the Israeli authorities. The safety of journalists across the globe is vital and they must be protected when carrying out their critical work.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether her Department has been able to obtain consular access to Alaa Abd el-Fattah, who is imprisoned in Egypt.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
The UK Government is in contact with the Egyptian authorities and urgently seeking consular access. We continue to support the family of Alaa Abdel Fattah. The UK Government regularly raises human rights concerns with the Egyptian authorities, including with regard to political prisoners in the Egyptian system, both privately and in forums such as the UN Human Rights Council. This includes raising the implementation of the rights guaranteed by Egypt's constitution.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she has made representations to her Egyptian counterpart authorities on the detention of Alaa Abd el-Fattah.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
The UK Government is in contact with the Egyptian authorities and urgently seeking consular access. We continue to support the family of Alaa Abdel Fattah. The UK Government regularly raises human rights concerns with the Egyptian authorities, including with regard to political prisoners in the Egyptian system, both privately and in forums such as the UN Human Rights Council. This includes raising the implementation of the rights guaranteed by Egypt's constitution.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations she has made to her counterpart in the Israeli Government on the death of Shireen Abu Akleh.
Answered by Amanda Milling - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
On 11 May, I publicly expressed my sadness upon hearing news of the tragic death of veteran Palestinian Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Aqleh, and called for a thorough investigation. The Foreign Secretary also made this clear in a statement on 12 May. Officials from the British Embassy Tel Aviv have reiterated the importance of an investigation with the Israeli authorities. The safety of journalists across the globe is vital and they must be protected when carrying out their critical work.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations she has made to the Nigerian Government on the imprisonment of Mubarak Bala.
Answered by Vicky Ford
The UK Government has followed Mr Bala's case closely, and has raised his case on multiple occasions with the Nigerian authorities, including following his recent sentencing. We believe that the right of individuals to express opinions is essential to a free and open society.We are concerned by the severity and length of sentence received by Mr Bala at trial. The British High Commissioner has expressed these concerns to the Kano State Government and the Nigerian President's Chief of Staff. We will continue to follow developments in Mr Bala's case closely and stress the importance of Mr Bala being treated in full accordance with his human rights, the rule of law, and the Nigerian constitutional right to freedom of religion or belief.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the report of the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of Human Rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, published on 21 March 2022, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the conclusion that Israel has imposed upon Palestine an apartheid reality in a post-apartheid world.
Answered by Amanda Milling - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
We do not agree with the use of this terminology. Any judgment on whether serious crimes under international law have occurred is a matter for judicial decision, rather than for governments or non-judicial bodies. As a friend of Israel, we have a regular dialogue on human rights. This includes encouraging the Government of Israel to abide by its obligations under international law and do all it can to uphold the values of equality for all.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she is taking steps with her international counterparts to encourage early elections in Libya.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
The UK fully supports the UN-facilitated, Libyan led and owned political process. Successful, free, fair and inclusive elections will be a crucial step in this process, and the Libyan people have made it clear their aspirations to have a say in who governs them. The UK is working with Libyan and international partners - including the UN Secretary-General's Special Advisor Stephanie Williams and the United Nations Support Mission in Libya - to pursue this priority through an inclusive political process to support Libya's sovereignty and national unity and to put the country on a path towards sustained peace, security and prosperity.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether the Government is taking steps together with international partners to encourage the disengagement of Russian and Turkish military forces from Libya.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
The UK is working with Libyan and international partners - including the UN Secretary-General's Special Advisor Stephanie Williams - to support Libya's sovereignty and national unity, and to put the country on a path to sustained peace, security and prosperity. In our engagement with external actors, we have been clear that the withdrawal of all foreign forces and mercenaries should happen without delay, as set out in the UK-led UN Security Council Resolution 2570, and that all external actors should implement the 20 October 2020 ceasefire agreement and the Action Plan agreed by the October 2021 5+5 Joint Military Committee Action Plan.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
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 any links between the Iranian government and the Houthis of Yemen.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
There is extensive evidence of Iranian material support to the Houthis, including in reports from UN Panel of Export and open-source reporting, which is in clear breach of UNSCR 2216. This Government regularly assesses the impact of Iran's continued provision of weapons and military support to the Houthis: it has contributed to the Houthis' sustained drone and missile attacks within Yemen, and into Saudi Arabia and UAE. This sustained support has stoked further conflict and undermined UN-led peace efforts.
It is vital that Yemen is not used as a theatre in which to escalate conflict in the region. We therefore urge Iran to fully support the UN Special Envoy's efforts to negotiate a ceasefire and the start of formal peace talks.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the large number of British citizens resident in the United Arab Emirates, what support the Government is offering to that country following the drone attack on Abu Dhabi airport on 17 January 2022.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
As set out by the Foreign Secretary and I on 17 January, the UK condemns in the strongest terms the attacks on Abu Dhabi. We are in close contact with our Emirati partners via Ministerial and official channels and continue to offer our support. We are closely monitoring the situation and keeping our Travel Advice under constant review. British Nationals in the UAE should sign up for alerts and follow our travel advice for the latest information.