With permission, Mr Speaker, I would like to update the House on our ongoing campaign to counter Daesh. The safety and security of our citizens is obviously the Government’s highest priority. It is at the core of our work in tackling Daesh, which remains our most significant terrorist threat both at home and abroad. This month marks the two-year anniversary of the liberation of Syria and Iraq from Daesh’s barbaric rule, but, as we saw on 21 January in Baghdad, Daesh is still able to carry out lethal attacks.
The Global Coalition against Daesh estimates that there are still around 10,000 Daesh members at large across Syria and Iraq. Many terrorists remain in detention facilities, but others are hidden in civilian populations and camps for internally displaced persons, so support for Daesh still lingers in many communities. At the same time, while Iraq and Syria remain Daesh’s primary focus, it also presents a clear and growing global threat, so diminishing Daesh’s ability to operate in other parts of the world, including Africa and Asia, must also be a priority for the international community. We must not allow it to take root elsewhere. Meanwhile, here at home, the threat we face from Islamist extremism is all too clear. The ongoing inquest into the horrific Manchester Arena attack, which killed 23 people, provides a tragic daily reminder of that.
We continue this struggle because we appreciate the real and direct threat it presents to the British people. The UK will continue to be a leading member of the 83-member Global Coalition, providing military support to tackle the remnants of Daesh, delivering essential aid to liberated communities and countering Daesh’s vile and warped propaganda. With that in mind, let me now set out the steps we are taking.
Since the start of the UK’s military intervention against Daesh, known as Operation Shader, the UK has trained more than 120,000 Iraqi and Iraqi Kurdish soldiers and released more than 4,000 munitions at enemy targets during the course of the air campaign. The global coalition as a whole has invested more than $4 billion to ensure that our partners on the ground and in the region are better trained and better equipped than Daesh. As part of the coalition efforts to prevent the resurgence of Daesh, the UK has provided support and funding for a range of other initiatives across the region. That includes things like the improvement of detention facilities in the north-eastern part of Syria that house Daesh fighters.
Military support for the sovereign Government of Iraq is now adapting in line with the changing security situation, but also Iraq’s growing military capabilities; and thanks to UK efforts and those of the wider coalition, Iraqi security forces are increasingly able to conduct successful independent counter-Daesh operations, and they now have the capability to deliver tactical training to their own armed forces, which is also important. That has allowed the coalition to reduce troop numbers, focusing instead on providing specialist operational support and advice to our Iraqi counterparts; and for that purpose, the UK maintains troops deployed to the region, supporting the Iraqi security forces, including officers working with NATO and with coalition allies.
On 18 February, the Secretary of State for Defence joined NATO Ministers in agreeing to incrementally expand the NATO Mission Iraq in line with that particular strategic focus. Of course, the Royal Air Force continues to conduct routine armed reconnaissance missions to support the Iraqi security forces. We are very proud of the role of our armed forces in that critical theatre.
Most recently, I can report to the House that on 11 February a coalition surveillance aircraft located a number of Daesh fighters. They were occupying two dispersed encampments on the banks of the Tharthar river, west of the city of Bayji. Two UK Typhoon FGR4s conducted careful checks of the surrounding area for civilians, before carrying out simultaneous attacks using two Paveway IV guided bombs against each group. The bombs hit their targets within the encampments, eliminating the terrorist threat.
Beyond Daesh, our support in the region continues to be challenged, including by the persistent and ongoing threat from Iranian-aligned Shi’a militia groups. We have seen a concerning pattern of attacks in recent weeks, including an attack on the coalition air base in Erbil in the Kurdish part of Iraq, which tragically killed two civilians, as well as injuring several coalition staff. The UK condemns these attacks on coalition bases and diplomatic premises, and we will continue to be absolutely resolute and robust in our response. Iran’s proxies must not be allowed to destabilise Iraq and the wider region, and we work very closely with our allies to support the Government in Iraq, protecting coalition forces and foreign missions. We are also working together to prosecute those responsible for such attacks, where, of course, the Iraqi people are often the primary victims.
The presence of covid-19 in both Syria and Iraq remains an acute challenge. Healthcare systems in both countries are under very severe pressure. Then there is the economic impact—the cost to jobs, to livelihoods—and the wider social costs that communities will feel for many years to come. We need to be particularly vigilant to ensure that these do not provide the conditions—the fertile ground—that Daesh can exploit to gain further support. In that sense, the humanitarian response forms part of our security objectives.
The UK remains one of the largest humanitarian donors to the Syria crisis, having spent more than £3.5 billion since 2012. Over that period we have distributed 28 million food rations, delivered 20 million medical consultations and dispensed 14 million vaccines. In addition to our existing aid commitments in Syria, the UK has also provided funding to delivery partners to help mitigate the impact of covid-19. That complements our ongoing support to deliver activities that help tackle transmission of the virus—things such as health care, water hygiene kits and sanitation support.
In relation to Iraq, clearly the economic challenges are compounded by covid-19 as well as, of course, the fall in oil prices. This compound crisis threatens Iraq’s stability and again risks creating the conditions that would allow extremism to grow; so we are working to counter that. We have committed £272 million in humanitarian support in Iraq since 2014, providing an absolutely vital lifeline to millions, with shelter, medical care and things like clean water. To date, UK funding has helped provide food assistance to more than 500,000 people, life-saving healthcare services to more than 4.3 million people, and safe drinking water and hygiene facilities to more than 3.5 million people.
We are working with the Government of Iraq and the international community to stabilise and reform the economy, in order to create and build the opportunities for all Iraqis. As friends of Iraq, we stand behind Prime Minister Kadhimi’s reform vision, together with all members of the coalition. I had the opportunity to meet Prime Minister Kadhimi in London last October for talks and to reinforce our message of solidarity with him and the Iraqi people.
As Daesh’s ability to plot its external operations has been downgraded, it is more reliant on its perverse propaganda and warped narrative to try to maintain its relevance and foment support for the conduct of terrorist attacks. With that objective, Daesh maintains a steady drumbeat of violent communications, which it distributes via encrypted messaging applications. I want to express my appreciation to the British media, which have generally shown admirable restraint and editorial judgment in reporting on these matters.
This is a critical moment. Yes, Daesh’s brand has weakened, but none the less it remains globally recognised. It has been adopted by an assortment—a whole range—of violent groups, from Mozambique right the way across to the Philippines.
In December 2020, the UK counter terrorism internet referral unit saw a 7% rise in the volume of terrorist content online, and we can see a worrying rise in the proportion of children and teenagers who are now being arrested for terrorism offences. It was Assistant Commissioner Neil Basu of the Met who described lockdown and the accessibility of terrorist content online as a “perfect storm”, because terrorists have digital access to those who are probably the most susceptible to extremist narratives.
We are tackling Daesh’s propaganda head on, and I am proud that the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office leads on this work on behalf of the global coalition. We have carried out a range of targeted and effective offensive cyber-operations. During the fight to liberate Mosul from Daesh control, we used those capabilities to disrupt Daesh’s battlefield communications, destabilise its ranks and help the coalition to surprise Daesh and, ultimately, overwhelm it.
In November, we revealed that the National Cyber Force is now bringing together the expertise of GCHQ, MI6, the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory and the Ministry of Defence, to take the online fight to terrorists, including, of course, Daesh. We are degrading its network and dismantling its lies, but also, and importantly, we are building resilience on the ground to its violent, extremist narrative. That particular battle—I would describe it as attritional—is often invisible to the public and the media, but it is absolutely essential, and we are prosecuting it with total vigour and determination.
We want to continue to play our full role in combating Daesh across each of these essential strategic fronts, to ensure the safety and security of the UK and Iraq and of the people and interests affected around the world. As the Prime Minister has said, we will never be complacent in the struggle. We will not let up until Daesh is consigned to the history books. I commend this statement to the House.