Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the findings of the Yazidi Justice Committee's report on State Responsibility and the Yazidi Genocide, published on 6 July 2022, whether her Department is taking steps to (a) identify, (b) document and (c) preserve all evidence relating to alleged perpetrators; and what steps she is taking, in collaboration with her international counterparts, to ensure that the individuals responsible for these alleged acts of genocide are prosecuted.
Answered on
11 July 2022
We note the findings of the Yazidi Justice Committee's report. The Yazidi community has suffered immense pain and loss as a result of the abhorrent crimes inflicted by Daesh. The UK advocated strongly for the passing of the Yazidi Survivors' Law in March 2021 and continues to advocate for the work of the Directorate of Yazidi Affairs, which is responsible for searching for survivors who are still missing, providing reparations to survivors and supporting judicial and investigative bodies on holding perpetrators to account. In parallel, we have also provided £2 million to the UN Investigative Team to Promote Accountability for Crimes Committed by Daesh (UNITAD).
The UK joined likeminded partners in committing to support Yazidis displaced or abducted by Daesh in a Joint alliance statement issued in October 2021. We will continue to champion UNITAD's work in gathering evidence of Daesh crimes, including against minority communities, and press a newly formed government on the importance of these issues, including searching for those missing Yazidi women and children abducted by Daesh.