Letter to the Clerk of the Committee from
the Parliamentary Relations and Devolution Department, Foreign
and Commonwealth Office, 7 June 2004
FOLLOW-UP:
WAR AGAINST
TERRORISM
Following the Foreign Secretary's evidence session
to the FAC on Foreign Policy Aspects of the War against Terrorism
of 5 May, I undertook to write answers to you on the Foreign Secretary's
behalf on the following questions.
Question 7—the steps we took to ensure
the MoD follows its obligations under international conventions
with respect to prisoners of war and detainees being held in Iraq.
There is no reason for the FCO to take steps
to ensure that the MoD follows its obligations under international
conventions with respect to prisoners of war and detainees held
in Iraq. The armed forces are fully aware of their obligations
under international law and the ICRC have commended UK armed forces
for that in meetings with my colleagues. They are given thorough
mandatory training courses, which include specific guidance on
handling prisoners of war. All personnel must attend refresher
training every year. Before going to Iraq, all personnel are briefed
on the Rules of Engagement and procedures for dealing with prisoners
of war or other detainees. Each combat unit is required to have
eight senior noncommissioned officers trained in handling prisoner
of war. And units which are responsible for the routine handling
of detainees conduct further specialist training.
Any credible allegations of abuse are treated
extremely seriously and are fully investigated, as in the case
of the specific allegations concerning UK forces raised in the
ICRC report.
Q8—The Clerk also asked on behalf of the
Committee if we could send them a copy of the very detailed manual
the Foreign Secretary referred to. I have asked the MoD for a
copy, which I will forward to you in due course.[19]
Q10—the steps being taken to safeguard
the security of British and FCO personnel in Iraq.
These are the arrangements for all civilian
staff employed by the FCO, or seconded through the FCO, in Iraq.
The same arrangements apply to staff employed in Iraq by DFID,
with whom we work jointly on these issues. Both Departments have
a duty officer system in place for dealing with any incidents
that take place outside normal working hours.
All staff deployed by us to Iraq are volunteers.
We make clear to them that they can leave whenever they wish to
do so.
Before travelling to Iraq, all staff on long
term postings and those visiting for longer than seven days, or
who visit frequently, attend a week long hazardous environment
training course. This includes information about mines, artillery
and weapons awareness, measures to avoid capture, hostage training,
self-sufficiency skills and emergency medical training.
The FCO then provides a series of detailed briefings
on the political and security situation, and on the personal security
guidelines, which apply to all our civilian staff in Iraq. This
includes up-to-date details of current threats and practical advice
about first arrival in Iraq. All staff are issued with body armour.
On arrival, the British Security Managers in
Baghdad and Basrah give all staff a thorough briefing on the local
security regulations. These cover, for example, arrangements for
travel, inside and outside the protected security zones, when
and where to wear body armour and helmets, and what to do in the
event of a mortar or rocket attack.
All staff are based in secure compounds, for
which the Coalition Provisional Administration provides perimeter
security with military and/or civilian guards.
For any journeys outside the secure compounds,
staff travel in convoys of at least two armoured vehicles with
at least one four man armed protection teams. (Because of the
current heightened threat, the minimum requirements at the moment
are three armoured vehicles and six armed guards.) A careful assessment
is done before any journey and the journey is only authorised
if the risks are judged to be manageable.
Finally, all of our office and living accommodation
in Iraq is regularly reviewed and changes made where necessary
in response to any perceived increase in threat. In Baghdad, where
there have been many rocket attacks on the Green Zone, we have
made arrangements to ensure that all our staff wear body armour
at night around the Green Zone and sleep under hard cover.
We expect the arrangements and procedures described
above to remain in place for the foreseeable future, including
after the establishment of our Embassy in Baghdad and Consulate-General
in Basrah on 1 July, except that we will make our own perimeter
security arrangements for our diplomatic posts.
As the Foreign Secretary said to you on 5 May,
we take extremely seriously my responsibility to mitigate the
risks for our staff in Iraq. The security measures we have taken
are more stringent than those employed by most other governments.
But the death of one British CPA staff member and a British security
guard on 24 May, are a sad and sobering reminder of the risks
involved. The method of attack is being investigated and we will
be looking very carefully at the results of the investigation
to see if there are any additional measures we should take.
Whatever the outcome of the investigation, we
shall continue to constantly review and revise our security procedures
to ensure that our staff can operate as safely and securely as
possible in what is a very difficult environment.
Q13—involvement of UK private military
companies or security forms in the custody and interrogation of
prisoners or detainees in Iraq.
The MOD has not employed private military companies
or security firms for the purposes of the interrogation of prisoners
and internees in Iraq.
Q20—definition of "foreign governments"
in the 30 March Iraq Survey Group report.
Matthew Hamlyn
Head, PRDD
19 Please refer to Ev 80 Back
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