§ Mr. HancockTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the cost to his Department was of missions involving the release of ordnance by UK aircraft over Iraq in each month since September 2001; and if he will make a statement. [104316]
§ Mr. IngramThe Ministry of Defence identifies the costs of operations in terms of the net additional costs it has incurred. It is not possible to separate out those costs attributable only to missions involving the release of ordnance, because they are an integral part of the whole operation.
§ Llew SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will(a) place in the Library and (b) post on the departmental website on a daily basis the battle damage assessment for coalition forces in their invasion of Iraq. [105543]
§ Dr. MoonieIt would be inappropriate to make battle damage assessments available. To do so would provide the Iraqi regime with considerable information which might jeopardise the future effectiveness of coalition operations. I am therefore withholding this information under Exemption 1 (Defence, Security and International Relations) of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.
Regular unclassified reports providing updated information on the progress of operations are placed in the Library of the House on days when no ministerial statement is made to the House.
§ Llew SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Iraqi civilians have been(a) killed and (b) severely injured since the coalition forces invaded Iraq; and if he will place in the Library, on a daily basis, details of new deaths or severe injuries caused to Iraqi civilians by the use of military force in the invasion of Iraq. [105563]
§ Mr. IngramWe have no means of ascertaining the numbers of Iraqis killed or injured during the coalition's military action, although we make every effort to keep any impact upon the Iraqi civilian population to an absolute minimum. Saddam Hussein has a history of falsely claiming such casualties, and it would be wrong to accept all reports at face value. It would not be helpful to publish daily the details requested by the hon. Member before the facts have been accurately identified.
§ Jeremy CorbynTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence under what powers Iraqi military personnel are held prisoner by UK forces; whether such prisoners are prisoners of war under the Geneva Convention; and if he will make a statement. [105344]
§ Mr. Hoon[holding answer 27 March 2003]: Coalition military action against Iraq is in conformity with international law. The taking of prisoners of war is a recognised and legitimate means of reducing an enemy's strength and fighting capacity. Iraqi military personnel who fall into the hands of United Kingdom forces will be treated in accordance with the Geneva Convention.
§ Llew SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many members of the Baathist Party Fedayeen have been killed by British Marines in Basra since the invasion of Iraq began. [105613]
652W
§ Mr. IngramPersonnel of 3 Commando Brigade, Royal Marines, have engaged both regular and irregular Iraqi forces which posed a direct threat to coalition forces on a number of occasions. Coalition forces have also attacked legitimate military and regime targets in and around Basra. The Ministry of Defence is unable to verify how many members of the Iraqi armed forces, Ba'ath Party or State Security Organisation have been killed as result of those operations.