§ Adam PriceTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what British(a) special forces and (b) other military personnel (i) are and (ii) were in 2002 (A) involved in operations and (B) present on the ground within the borders of Iraq. [89854]
§ Mr. HoonIt is the longstanding policy of successive governments never to comment on the activities of special forces. I am therefore withholding the information requested in accordance with Exemption 1 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.
403WRegarding conventional forces, there are and have been no military forces deployed on ground operations within Iraqi borders either currently or at any time in 2002. There are, however, 11 United Kingdom military personnel currently deployed with the United Nations Iraq-Kuwait Observation Mission (UNIKOM)), the headquarters of which is situated just inside Iraq's borders, within the UN Demilitarised Zone.