In the House of Lords on 29 October, Lord Alton of Liverpool asked the Government for its assessment of aerial bombardment in Sudan. Peers then pressed FCDO minister Lord Wood of Anfield on alleged chemical weapons use, external backers and the Quad process.
Speaker: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench). Institution: House of Lords, oral question. Date: Thursday 29 October 2026. Ministerial response: Lord Wood of Anfield, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, FCDO. Read the Hansard transcript; video of the sitting is on Parliamentlive.tv.
Lord Alton asked what assessment the Government had made of recent aerial bombardments in Sudan. Lord Wood replied that aerial warfare, including drones, was "inflicting devastating harm on civilians and civilian infrastructure", killing over 1,000 civilians in the first half of this year and adding to the risk of famine.
Chemical weapons allegations
Lord Alton asked what response the UK had received from the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) about "credible allegations" of chemical weapons use. Lord Wood said the UK had "consistently raised concerns about allegations of weapon use by the Sudanese Armed Forces", including at the OPCW, and that he had recently hosted the OPCW director-general.
Lord Purvis of Tweed (Liberal Democrat) said asking the alleged perpetrators to investigate themselves over reported chlorine gas use was "wholly insufficient". He asked why the UK, as Security Council penholder on Sudan, had not used Articles IX and X of the Chemical Weapons Convention to seek an independent investigation. The minister said the UK was "urging Sudan to conclude the investigation that is under way" and was pursuing several strands at the OPCW and the UN.
External backers and the arms embargo
Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour) raised the UAE's alleged support for the RSF. Lord Wood said external support for either side "serves only to fuel the bloodshed and prolonged violence and must end". He added that the UK was working with the US and others to support efforts to widen the scope of the UN arms embargo, which currently covers only Darfur. Answering Lord Alton earlier, he had urged peers not to believe "wild speculation" about any UK preference in the race for UN Secretary-General.
Lord Bellingham (Conservative) recalled the RSF assault on El Fasher a year ago. The minister pointed to the new UK sanctions on suspected perpetrators and to £146 million a year in UK humanitarian support. Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Labour) asked about the US-led Quad and about work with Sudanese civil society; Lord Wood cited a recent E3+R4 meeting in Istanbul attended by the Foreign Secretary. The Bishop of Winchester raised attacks on churches and religious communities, including in the Nuba Mountains.
Why it matters
The exchange put the alleged SAF chemical weapons use firmly on the parliamentary record, alongside the drone campaign. It also showed growing cross-party pressure for the UK to use its formal powers under the convention rather than wait for Port Sudan's own inquiry.
Photo: Lord Alton of Liverpool, official portrait. © House of Lords / photography by Roger Harris, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0.