Written question asked by Lord Hylton (Crossbench) on Monday, 20 February 2017, in the House of Lords. It was due for an answer on Monday, 6 March 2017. It was answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns (Conservative) on Monday, 6 March 2017 on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Iraq: Islamic State

Question: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of reports by Human Rights Watch that 180 boys under 18 are being detained by the Kurdistan regional government on suspicion of involvement with ISIS, and of reports that they were tortured and deprived of contact with their families.

Answer: The Government takes any allegations of human rights abuses or violations extremely seriously and stands ready to challenge governments on these allegations. These are grave allegations made by Human Rights Watch and we stand ready to raise concerns with the Kurdistan Regional Government. We are currently working with the European Union Delegation in Kurdistan, other local diplomatic missions and Human Rights Watch to better understand the allegations. Once this process has been completed we will consider what further action will follow.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: HL5453
Session: 2016-17
Subjects: Children Detainees Iraq Torture Kurdistan Regional Government Islamic State
Link: View this Written question on www.parliament.uk