Written question asked by Tam Dalyell (Labour) on Wednesday, 2 December 1998, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 16 December 1998. It was answered by Tony Blair (Labour) on Wednesday, 16 December 1998 on behalf of the Prime Minister.

Prime Minister

Question: To ask the Prime Minister, what assessment he has made of the observations by Mr Denis Halliday, the UN's former humanitarian co-ordinator, in Middle East International on 13th November, concerning the deaths of children as a result of the UN sanctions against Iraq.

Answer: Mr. Dalyell: To ask the Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the observations by Mr. Denis Halliday, the UN's former humanitarian co-ordinator, in Middle East International on 13 November, concerning the deaths of children as a result of the UN sanctions against Iraq. [62668] The Prime Minister: Like Mr. Halliday, we deeply regret the suffering of the Iraqi people and we agree with him that it is unfortunate that the UN has been obliged to sustain a sanctions regime against Iraq for so long. But we reject claims that the Iraqi people are suffering because of sanctions. The international community has done all it can to protect the Iraqi people from the effects of sanctions. It is the Iraqi Government, by consistently seeking to thwart these efforts in an attempt to bring pressure for sanctions to be lifted before it has complied with its obligations, who bear responsibility for the suffering of the Iraqi people. The latest report by the UN Special Rapporteur Mr. Max van der Stoel into the human rights situation in Iraq also holds Iraq primarily responsible for the precarious food and health situation in Iraq.

Secondary information