Iran
(Cardiff North) (Lab)
8. What recent assessment he has made of the political situation
in Iran.
(Warley) (Lab)
18. What steps his Department is taking to help tackle
destabilising activities by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard
Corps.
The Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development
Affairs ()
These protests in Iran are a watershed moment. After years of
repression, the Iranian people have clearly had enough. They are
standing up to the authoritarian regime under which they live.
Sadly, the regime has responded in the only way it knows: with
violence. The UK is committed to holding Iran to account,
including with more than 300 sanctions—including the sanctioning
of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in its entirety. We will
continue to work with partners to challenge the regime’s
aggression at home and its disruptive behaviour in the region.
I thank the Secretary of State for his answer. Iranians are being
hanged from cranes with black bags over their heads and their
hands and feet bound while Iranian weapons are being used to
perpetrate Putin’s illegal war murdering Ukrainians. Will the
Secretary of State join me in condemning those human rights
violations and tell me exactly what sanctions he will bring
forward against Raisi’s abhorrent regime?
I personally and the UK Government have regularly condemned the
abuses in Iran. Of course, I recognise that that tone is
reflected right across the House. We have sanctioned the morality
police; we have sanctioned the Iranian judges whom we know to be
involved in those secret trials. We will continue to work with
our international partners, and directly, to sanction the members
of the Iranian regime who continue to abuse the human rights of
the people within that country.
The Minister has rightly identified that the clerical fascist
regime in Tehran is increasingly using violence and terror in
trying to crush the popular protests there, while also
destabilising the region through proxies, as well as further
afield. He knows that a vital underpinning of this dreadful
regime’s activities is the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. He
mentioned working with other parties; he knows that the United
States has already taken action to proscribe the IRGC. Will that
finally persuade him to sanction to the IRGC?
We already sanction the IRGC in its entirety. We will continue to
work closely with our friends in the international community to
prevent the point that the right hon. Gentleman raises: the
exporting of attack drones and other munitions to Russia, which
are then being used by Vladimir Putin’s troops to attack
civilians and civilian infrastructure in Ukraine. We will
continue to sanction individuals, and as I say, the IRGC is
already sanctioned in its entirety.
Mr Speaker
I call the shadow Minister.
(Leeds North East)
(Lab)
The Metropolitan police have warned about threats described as an
“imminent, credible risk” to life against British-Iranian
journalists in the United Kingdom. The Iranian regime has also
threatened BBC Persian journalists. I ask the Foreign Secretary
again to set out what further targeted sanctions the Government
will be taking against the whole Iranian regime and, more
importantly, to ensure that the Government act against any
threats to individuals in the United Kingdom.
The hon. Gentleman will understand that it is counterproductive
to detail what future sanctions designations might be brought
in—we want to ensure that the targets of those sanctions do not
in any way try to evade the sanctions before they are brought in.
The UK remains absolutely determined to ensure that Iran does not
intimidate people within this country. We will always stand up to
aggression from foreign nations. We will absolutely not tolerate
threats, particularly towards journalists who are highlighting
what is going on in Iran, or indeed towards any other individual
living in the UK. On 11 November, I summoned the Iranian chargé
d’affaires to highlight the UK’s position on this; and, working
with our colleagues in the Home Office, we ensured that the
Iranian journalists who were under threat according to our
information were protected by the British police.
Israel and Palestine
(Edinburgh East) (SNP)
11. What recent assessment he has made of Israel’s compliance
with its obligations under international law in the Occupied
Palestinian Territories.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign,
Commonwealth and Development Affairs ()
As a friend of Israel, we have a regular dialogue on human rights
and all matters relating to the occupation. That includes
encouraging the Government of Israel to abide by their
obligations under international law. We are concerned by
instability on the west bank and call on all sides to work
together to urgently de-escalate the situation.
In the past year, we have had three compelling reports, produced
by Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and the Israeli
organisation B’Tselem. All of them accuse the Israeli authorities
of committing the crime of apartheid. We have had plans published
recently to effectively annex the west bank into Israel, and we
now have the appointment of violently racist Ministers into the
Israeli Government. Is it not time to step up the diplomatic
pressure on Israel to ensure that it abides by international law
and upholds the rights of Palestinians?
First, we do not recognise the terminology about apartheid. Any
judgment on serious crimes under international law is a matter
for judicial decision, rather than for Governments or
non-judicial bodies. We do work closely with the Israeli
Government. We condemn any incidents of violence by settlers
against the Palestinians.
Topical
questions
(Wimbledon) (Con)
T6. The response of the Iranian regime to political process has
been judicial murder. Two young men were reported to have been
executed yesterday, and there is a list of 41 executions rumoured
to be happening before the weekend. Will my right hon. Friend
call in the Iranian ambassador and express our revulsion, and
will he also introduce immediate sanctions against the Iranian
regime?
My hon. Friend makes an incredibly important point. We have
summoned senior Iranian diplomats to make clear the UK’s position
on the brutality they are meting out on their own people, we have
sanctioned judges involved in the secret courts that have imposed
the death sentence on Iranian protesters, and we will continue to
push the Iranian regime to do better.
(Buckingham) (Con)
T9. Notwith-standing the answer my right hon. Friend gave
earlier, given that Germany now believes that Iran’s Islamic
Revolutionary Guard Corps was behind several terror attacks
against synagogues, that our own security services have revealed
at least 10 attempted killings by the IRGC in the UK this year
alone, and as the threat it poses looms ever closer to home, does
the Foreign Secretary agree with me that now is the time to
proscribe the IRGC?
My hon. Friend, who speaks with great passion and authority on
this issue, knows that it is a long-standing Government policy
that we do not speculate on future proscriptions. He will know
that we have sanctioned the IRGC in its entirety, and we have
brought specific actions against individuals who we know to be
involved either with arms distributions or violations of
international humanitarian law.
(North Tyneside) (Lab)
T5. Does the Minister agree that unjustifiable Iranian
bombardments on Iraqi Kurdistan and other attacks require
resolving disputes between Baghdad and Irbil plus accelerating
economic and political reform, and that these should continue to
be key themes for our excellent diplomats there?
I met the President and Foreign Minister of the newly installed
Iraqi Government when I was in Egypt, and we of course have a
very good working relationship with both Irbil and Baghdad. It is
in the interests of all Iraqis that the relationship between
Irbil and Baghdad is fruitful and we will continue to invest
diplomatic effort to ensure that continues.
(Caerphilly) (Lab)
Yesterday, I learned that I was to be sanctioned by the Iranian
regime for my support for human rights and freedom in Iran. I
assure the House that that support will continue unabated. What
support are the Government giving to the BBC Persian service?
I am sure that the hon. Gentleman will wear that sanction
designation as a badge of honour, because the point that he has
made in standing up for the voice of the Iranian people who are
being oppressed by their own regime is an important one. We take
the protection of people here in the UK, whether British
nationals or Iranians, incredibly seriously, and I will work with
the Home Office to ensure that that protection is meaningful and
strong.
