Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-09-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many meetings have taken place between ministers of his Department and their Saudi Arabian counterparts since 25 March 2015; and at how many of those meetings concerns were discussed about alleged breaches of International Humanitarian Law in Yemen by air strikes.
Mr Tobias Ellwood
We are aware of reports of alleged violations of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) by actors in the conflict and take these very seriously. It is important that all sides conduct thorough and conclusive investigations into all incidents where it is alleged that IHL has been breached.
We regularly raise the importance of compliance with IHL with the Saudi Arabian Government and other members of the military Coalition. We continue to monitor the situation closely, seeking further information where appropriate.
The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Mr Johnson) raised the issue of IHL compliance with his Saudi counterpart, Foreign Minister Al Jubeir on 22 August. I also raised it during my meeting with Foreign Minister Al Jubeir on 25 August in Jeddah. I also held an open meeting for parliamentarians on 7 September with Foreign Minister Al Jubeir where members from across the House raised questions, including alleged breaches of IHL.
