We are concerned by the reports of violence in Kessab, although it is impossible to establish an accurate figure of the numbers of people who have been killed or displaced. We believe that the majority of the ethnic Armenian population of the town has left, along with many other Syrians, because of the fighting in the area. We have not received any confirmed reports of churches being desecrated and we call for all places of worship to be respected. We understand that a range of groups has been involved in the fighting, including the Al-Nusrah Front. We urge all sides to the conflict in Syria to respect international humanitarian law and the rights of all Syrians. Both the Syrian National Coalition and the Free Syrian Army have repeatedly made clear their commitment to protecting all civilians, regardless of religious, ethnic and political affiliation.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/3839", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Baroness Warsi"} } , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Baroness Warsi"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2014-04-09", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2014-04-09T12:00:00.00Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "16"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Foreign and Commonwealth Office"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Foreign and Commonwealth Office"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2014-04-01", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "2"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25277", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Lords"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports of an attack on 21 March on Kessab in northern Syria; whether they have made any estimate of the number of those killed in the attack and of those who have fled the town as a result; whether they have received any reports about the desecration of churches in the town; and what assessment they have made of the possible involvement of the Al-Nusra Front and the Islamic State of Iraq and Sham in the attack.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/738", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool"} } , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Lord Alton of Liverpool"} ], "uin" : "HL6490"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/46394", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Foreign and Commonwealth Office"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/46394/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
We share many of the concerns that United to End Genocide raise in their recent report on the plight of the Rohingya. We continue to press the Burmese government to find a long term solution to bring peace and reconciliation to the communities in Rakhine State. The Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for East Devon (Mr Swire), summoned the Burmese Ambassador on 7 April and called on the Burmese government urgently to restore humanitarian access to all communities in need, and to ensure the security of humanitarian aid workers and all communities in Rakhine State. Mr Swire raised our wider concerns about the situation in Rakhine State with senior Burmese Ministers during his visit in January. I personally discussed the situation with Minister of National Planning and Economic Development, Dr Kan Zaw, during his visit to the UK in March.<\/p>
We remain in close contact with Médecins Sans Frontières and have made clear to the Burmese government their responsibility to ensure services are adequately delivered. We continue to maintain that allegations of human rights abuses must be dealt with immediately through a clear and transparent investigative and prosecutorial process that meets international standards.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/3839", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Baroness Warsi"} } , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Baroness Warsi"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2014-04-14", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2014-04-14T12:00:00.00Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "16"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Foreign and Commonwealth Office"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Foreign and Commonwealth Office"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2014-04-01", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "2"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25277", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Lords"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report Marching to Genocide in Burma; and what, if any, action they intend to take in response.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/738", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool"} } , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Lord Alton of Liverpool"} ], "uin" : "HL6491"} ], "itemsPerPage" : 10, "page" : 0, "startIndex" : 1, "totalResults" : 2, "type" : ["http://purl.org/linked-data/api/vocab#ListEndpoint", "http://purl.org/linked-data/api/vocab#Page"]} }