The Gulf (Hansard, 18 February 1991)

§ Miss Hoey
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what information he has on the number of deaths of(a) military personnel and (b) civilians that have occurred as a direct result of the outbreak of hostilities in the Gulf.

§ Mr. Cohen
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is his latest estimate of military casualties to date in the Gulf conflict.

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton
Her Majesty's Government are not in a position to provide an overall estimate of the number of people killed so far during hostilities. The United Kingdom has no personnel confirmed as killed as a direct result of hostilities.

§ Mr. Wareing
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what information he has on how many civil servants have been called up as reservists for service in the Gulf; and if he will make a statement on the effect of such calls-ups on their pay, posts and promotion prospects.

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton
The civilian employment of reservists called out for service as a result of the Gulf conflict is not centrally recorded. Reservists called out from the civil service will be paid the military pay appropriate to their service rank. If necessary, under established balance of civil pay procedures, they will also receive additional payments from their previously employing Department to bring total emoluments up to the level of their civil service pay. Posts will be kept available for reservist staff called out for service and their promotion prospects will be unaffected.

§ Mr. Cohen
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the resolution of the House of 21 January on the Gulf represents Her Majesty's Government's policy.

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton
Yes.

§ Mr. Cohen
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what steps have been taken to minimise civilian casualties in the Gulf conflict wherever possible; and if he will make a statement;
(2) what advice he has issued to British commanders on how minimising civilian casualties should be interpreted;
(3) what consideration has been given in authorising the use of B-52 bombers by the allied coalition to minimising civilian casualties wherever possible;
(4) what is his latest estimate of civilian casualties to date in the Gulf conflict.

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton
Allied pilots have instructions only to attack targets which could pose a threat to allied forces or facilities supporting Iraq's occupation of Kuwait. These attacks are carefully planned, with the aim of minimising the risk of causing civilian casualties. Iraq has made varying claims about the number of civilian casualties, but we are unable to verify these claims.
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§ Mr. Cohen
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what losses have been suffered to date in the middle east by(a) the allies and (b) the United Kingdom.

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton
In the air campaign so far, six RAF Tornado GR1 s have failed to return from missions over Iraq. A further Tornado GR1 was lost following a mechanical failure immediately after take-off. The United States announced on 15 February that, in addition to the United Kingdom losses, coalition forces have lost a further 22 aircraft to enemy action.

§ Mr. Cohen
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what action the joint information bureau has taken to police and enforce the media ground rules for reporting the Gulf war.

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton
The allied joint information bureaux provide contact points for journalists and as such do not directly police and enforce the ground rules for reporting. Responsibility for policing and enforcing these ground rules falls to various authorities, including individual national staffs who man the bureaux. British authorities in theatre routinely raise with journalists aspects of compliance with the ground rules. In certain cases the Saudi authorities will take direct action.

§ Mr. Cohen
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on what basis(a) war facts and information are withheld and (b) disinformation released.

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton
The Government's policy is to allow all reasonable freedom and access for reporting, subject only to constraints essential to protect the safety of coalition forces and the security of allied operations.

§ Mr. Flynn
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what provisions have been made for the long-term management of sewage and waste oils from military operations arising from the British forces in the Saudi Arabian desert.

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton
In desert areas sewage is incinerated, while waste oil is drained into drums carried for this purpose and removed to a civilian disposal facility.

§ Mr. Flynn
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what protective measures have been taken to protect British forces in the Gulf from being bitten by the camel spider, scorpions, the carpet viper, the black desert cobra, the horned viper and desert ants.

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton
All personnel moving to the Gulf are briefed on the particular health risks associated with the local environment, including those posed by arachnids, reptiles and insects. Normal military clothing and footwear are considered sufficient protection in normal circumstances and we have no knowledge of any specific problems concerning the species mentioned.

§ Mr. Flynn
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the policy of the Royal Air Force operating in the Gulf in regard to targets of opportunity; and what guidance is given to pilots to judge whether such targets are civilian.

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton
Allied pilots have instructions to attack only targets which could pose a threat to allied forces or facilities supporting Iraq's occupation of Kuwait.
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On occasions, aircraft have returned with their bombs because their crews have been unable to identify their target clearly.

§ Mr. Flynn
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will obtain a copy of the account of Mr. Ramsey Clark concerning the damage caused to residential areas in Iraq from allied bombing raids.

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton
We are unable to confirm the claims made by Mr. Ramsey Clark about damage to residential areas in Iraq.

§ Mr. Dalyell
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what facilities are available in Bundeswehr hospitals for Gulf wounded.

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton
There are no plans to use Bundeswehr hospitals for the treatment of British personnel wounded in the Gulf.

§ Mr. Marlow
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is his assessment of the effect of the interdiction of Iraqi logistic systems on the non-Iraqi population of Kuwait.

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton
The people of Kuwait have had to suffer over six months of occupation and ill-treatment by Iraq. Conditions for the Kuwaiti people will improve only when that occupation is ended, which is the aim of the allied military campaign.

§ Mr. Marlow
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what military objectives in the Gulf have been discussed or agreed with Israel.

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton
The aims of the coalition forces are those laid down by the United Nations Security Council.

§ Mr. Marlow
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is his assessment of the level of civilian casualties to date in Basra.

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton
Iraq has made numerous claims about civilian casualties resulting from the allied air campaign, including in the Basra area. We are unable to verify Iraq's claims.

§ Mr. Marlow
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what was the military purpose served by the destruction of the justice and local government ministries in Baghdad.

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton
The justice and local government ministries form an integral part of the national command and control structure of Iraq.

§ Mr. Marlow
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether any of the Patriot missile launchers are located in the occupied territories.

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton
Deployments of Patriot missile launchers in defence of Israel are a matter for the Israeli Government.

§ Mr. Marlow
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is his assessment of the length of time in which the Al-Amerieh bunker had been used as an air raid shelter.

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton
The bunker attacked in Baghdad on 13 February was constructed in the early 1980s during 65W the Iran-Iraq war, but, as the United States has said, it was converted to a military command and control facility in the late 1980s.

§ Mr. Marlow
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a detailed inquiry into the alleged destruction of a civil air raid shelter in Baghdad, and review procedures required to minimise the risk of any similar occurrence.

§ Mr. Alton
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the bombing on 13 February of Iraqi civilians sheltering in the Baghdad air raid shelter.

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton
The allied aim remains to keep civilian casualties to a minimum. The United States has made it clear that the bunker would not have been attacked if it had been known that the civilians were inside. The United Kingdom has the same policy.

§ Mr. Michael
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will ensure that contracts for passenger and freight air transport during the current period are directed to British firms which have been subject to financial pressures due to the Gulf crisis.

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton
While reserving the right to secure charter air transport services by open competition, some 95 per cent. of Ministry of Defence contracts arising from the Gulf situation and related activities have been let to United Kingdom firms. A further 3 per cent. related to requirements which could not be met in the United Kingdom market.

§ Mr. Hinchliffe
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what contingency plans exist to deal with large-scale contamination by anthrax spores of personnel serving in the Gulf.

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton
A range of counter-measures have been taken, or are available, to deal with the possible use of chemical or biological weapons against our forces deployed in the Gulf. For obvious reasons, it is not our practice to comment on specific agents or countermeasures. We have made it clear ther Her Majesty's Government would view any use of such agents with very grave concern.