§ Lord Hyltonasked Her Majesty's Government:
What information they had about the recent destruction of the village of Awena and the killing of its inhabitants by Iraqi military forces; whether this village falls within the Kurdish areas protected by the United Nations; and whether a response has been, or will be, made to Iraq.
§ The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Baroness Chalker of Wallasey)We are aware of two recent attacks on the village of Awena by Iraqi government forces. Awena is in an area controlled by the Iraqi-Kurdish administration. It lies north of the 36th parallel and therefore falls within the air-exclusion zone over northern Iraq. We take every opportunity to remind the Iraqi government of its obligations under UN Security Council Resolution 688 to cease immediately its repression of the civilian population of Iraq.