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 effect of the recent alleged downing of a US-operated AeroVironment RQ-20 Puma drone by Houthi rebels in Yemen on (a) the Yemeni civil war and (b) relations between Iran and the West.

We are aware of reports that the Houthis recently downed a US drone, but we have seen no evidence to corroborate these reports. We are clear that continued Houthi violence only makes a peaceful resolution to the Yemeni civil war less likely. We continue to urge all parties to de-escalate, participate in positive dialogue and engage with the peace process led by UN Special Envoy, Martin Griffiths.

We are also deeply concerned by the findings of the UN Panel of Experts on Yemen that military equipment of Iranian origin was introduced into Yemen after the imposition of the targeted arms embargo. This puts Iran in non-compliance with Security Council Resolution 2216 (2015) and reaffirms our concerns about destabilising Iranian activity in Yemen and the wider region. We have raised these concerns with the Iranian Government.