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Written question asked by Paul Flynn (Labour) on Friday, 29 August 2014, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 2 September 2014. A holding answer was provided on Friday, 5 September 2014. A substantive answer was provided by Mark Francois (Conservative) on Thursday, 16 October 2014 on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.

Armed Forces: Deployment

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether any British military personnel have been deployed to (a) Northern Iraq, (b) Iraqi Kurdistan and (c) Northern Syria since June 2014.

Answer

As a member of the US coalition, the UK is committed to countering ISIL in Iraq and Syria. British personnel have been providing logistical, liaison and surveillance support in Iraq and will continue to do so. From 27 September 2014, following the parliamentary vote, the RAF began flying strike missions over Iraq. We have also recently sent a small team to provide short term training to Kurdish forces. These troops are not deployed in a ground combat role.

Additionally, as part of our preparations for a potential humanitarian airlift from the Sinjar Mountains in August, we deployed military personnel to Erbil. These troops were recovered to Cyprus when it became clear that the operation would not go ahead.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
207379
Session
2014-15
Subjects
Armed forces Deployment Iraq Syria Kurds
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk