Iraq

HC Deb 27 November 2003 vol 415 cc421-4W

Mr. Hancock

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many families of the Iraq Governing Council were living in Iraq before the Allied invasion this year; and how many are living in Iraq.[140910]

Mr. Rammell

A number of families of Iraqi Governing Council members were living in Iraq prior to military action, and others returned when hostilities ceased. This number changes as the families come and go.

Harry Cohen

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the contracts which the Office of the Iraq Programme reported in November 2002 had been approved but for which no funds were available due to political disagreements between the governments of the US and UK and the then government of Iraq; what these contracts were for: and if he will make a statement.[141117]

Mr. Rammell

Gaps in funding for approved contracts were due to insufficient revenues from Iraqi oil exports, exacerbated by the former regime's unilateral decision on several occasions to halt exports. These contracts covered a range of sectors. The UN regularly urged the Iraqi Government to prioritise its requirements and ensure that minimal funds required to fund priority sector contracts were available, but the former regime refused to do so. Instead, Saddam Hussein continued to abuse the Oil For Food Programme, ordering many non essential goods, such as equipment for a new Olympic sports stadium.

Harry Cohen

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether it is his policy that NATO should have a role in Iraq; and if he will make a statement.[141119]

Mr. Rammell

NATO currently provides limited support to the Polish-led Multi-National Division in south central Iraq. We do not envisage NATO taking on a major role in Iraq in the short term, although we do not rule out further involvement at some stage.

Harry Cohen

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps Coalition forces are taking to deal with shortages of medicine in Iraq; and if he will make a statement. [141181]

Mr. Rammell

Coalition forces are not responsible for the distribution of medicines in Iraq, but assist where appropriate. The public health system was left an empty shell by the former regime, but since May the Iraqi Ministry of Health has estimated that 15,000 tons of pharmaceuticals and medical supplies have been delivered. New drug supply systems are not yet fully operational. Until the supply accounting and reporting systems are in place, some difficulties will continue to occur.

Work is under way in the Iraqi Ministry of Health to develop a national drug formulary. This will form the baseline for future purchases throughout the country and will improve the sourcing of drugs. The Iraqi Ministry of Health, the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) and the World Health Organisation are also furthering a complete review of missing drugs and supplies. This is scheduled to finish in three months.

These initiatives provide the best and only ways to ensure that full medical supplies are getting through to the Iraqi people and we will continue to support them.

Harry Cohen

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps Coalition forces are taking to deal with waste water being pumped untreated into rivers in Iraq; and if he will make a statement.[141182]

Mr. Rammell

The Coalition has carried out emergency repair and rehabilitation work on several waste water treatment works in Iraq. Coalition partners have also partly funded UNICEF's environmental and sanitation programme in Iraq, with the UK's Department for International Development (DFID) contributing £6,835,187. DFID has also given £16,500,000 to the Red Cross movement, whose work includes water and sanitation activities.

We understand that a request to the US Congress for £675 million specifically for waster water treatment has been successful and will be invested (by the Coalition's Programme Management Office) over the next two years.

Mr. Woodward

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the Government's estimate is of the numbers of Muslims killed directly or indirectly by Saddam Hussein since 1979, based on additional information discovered since 1 May.[141282]

Mr. Rammell

From 1979 Saddam Hussein's regime was involved either directly, or indirectly in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people, the large majority of whom were Muslims. These deaths occurred during conflicts with neighbouring countries and through internal repression. Since 1 May, a large quantity of documentation has been found in Iraq relating to killings and persecution by the former regime. We are working with Iraqi Ministries and other organisations to analyse this documentation. Until this work is complete, a final figure will not be known.

Mr. Woodward

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many mass graves have been discovered in Iraq since 1 May; and what estimate he has made of the number of people buried in each of those graves.[141283]

Mr. Rammell

Since 1 May, some 270 mass graves have been reported to the Coalition Provisional Authority, with more sites still being discovered. Of these, about one third have been assessed so far, with one third of these confirmed as mass graves. The UK has seconded a forensic team to the CPA to co-ordinate and prioritise forensic work. From documentary and physical evidence found so far, it is estimated that around 300,000 people may be buried in mass graves in Iraq, although the true number will not be known until full investigations have been completed.

Mr. Woodward

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what evidence of torture and killing of Iraqi citizens under the regime of Saddam Hussein have been discovered in Iraq since 1 May.[141284]

Mr. Rammell

Since 1 May, both physical and documentary evidence has been found which details the torture and killing of Iraqi citizens under Saddam Hussein's regime, including systematic abuse in police stations and prisons. UK secondees in the Coalition Provisional Authority Office of Human Rights and Transitional Justice are helping to analyse documentary evidence and take personal testimonies of human rights abuses by the former regime.