PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
Syria: Military Intervention (3 July 2017)

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if his Department will make an assessment of the accuracy of reports by Amnesty International that white phosphorus has been used by US-led forces in Syria.

Asked by:
Alison McGovern (Labour)

The UK has not used White Phosphorous in Syria. In accordance with the law of armed conflict, white phosphorus rounds are used for screening, obscuring, and marking in a way that fully considers the possible incidental effects on civilians and civilian structures. The Coalition takes all reasonable precautions to minimize the risk of incidental injury to non-combatants and damage to civilian structures.

Answered by:
Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton (Conservative)
9 July 2017