To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions (a) she and (b) officials in her Department have had with her international counterparts on establishing an investigation into the fate and location of the 2,673 Yazidi women and children who have been missing since 2014 in Iraq.
Answered on
23 September 2021
The UK is a key ally to survivor and minority communities who suffered atrocities under Daesh. We played a leading role in the establishment of the UN Investigative Team to Promote Accountability for Crimes Committed by Da'esh/ISIL (UNITAD). We champion its work in gathering evidence of crimes, including sexual violence against minority communities and welcome its expanded engagement with witnesses, survivors and impacted communities. Our Embassy in Baghdad has regular discussions with the Government of Iraq and UNITAD, encouraging their closer co-operation to achieve justice for victims of Daesh's crimes.
The passage of the Yazidi Survivors Law in March 2021, which includes provisions to search for missing survivors, is a welcome step toward justice and reparations for survivors. We continue to work with a range of actors including the Government of Iraq, minorities' organisations and survivors to ensure this law is fully implemented. We are funding both psycho-social care for female survivors of conflict related sexual violence, and technical support to Iraq's Directorate of Yazidi Affairs, responsible for implementation of the law.