The UK is to set up a rapid action team, aimed at collecting evidence of mass rape in conflict zones when it is used as a weapon of war, reports The Guardian newspaper on Tuesday.
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The team, created by the UK Foreign Office, will be launched later this year. Consisting of police, forensic experts, doctors, psychologists and lawyers, it is part of a wider focus on countering sexual war crimes.
The newspaper reports that during the launch, the UK foreign secretary, William Hague, will state that Syria could be one of the team's first deployments.
Extracts of Hague's speech, released by the Foreign Office, include:
"Despite the valiant efforts of many individuals and organisations, the perpetrators of the worst sexual crimes generally go unpunished,"
"We want to use Britain's influence and diplomatic capability to rally effective international action."
"We want to help find practical ways to ensure that survivors feel confident to speak out, and regain the dignity, rights, and restitution that is their due. And we want to see a significant increase in the number of successful prosecutions so that we erode and eventually demolish the culture of impunity."
