A/HRC/13/31 Observations 302. The Working Group appreciates the meeting held with representatives of the Government of Iraq and looks forward to continued cooperation. 303. The Working Group calls upon the Government to sign and ratify the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance and accept the competence of the Committee under articles 31 and 32. Ireland Number of outstanding cases at the beginning of the period under review Cases transmitted to the Government during the period under review: 0 Cases clarified during the period under review: 0 Cases sent under the urgent action procedure Cases sent under the standard procedure 0 0 0 Number of cases on which the Government has replied 0 Government Nongovernmental sources Number of outstanding cases at the end of the year under review 0 0 0 Multiple replies on some cases Number of cases of possible clarification by Government (6month rule) N/A 0 General allegation Yes Government response No Prompt intervention letter N/A Government response N/A Working Group request for a visit N/A Government response N/A General allegations Summary of the allegations 304. Information was submitted by sources concerning obstacles reportedly encountered in the implementation of the Declaration. This information was transmitted to the Government after the Working Group’s eighty-seventh session. 305. According to the reports, the Government of Ireland was involved in 2003 in a practice of renditions and secret detention. The role of the Government in this practice allegedly consisted of allowing the use of its airports to transport victims of rendition. Those planes stopped over in those airports during the process of transferring, taking, delivering, or returning detainees from the rendition. It is believed that the use of these planes, without the control and scrutiny of the Governments, was essential to facilitate and implement the rendition programme. In some cases, these planes were used to detain individuals in Europe, while in other cases victims of enforced disappearances were transported in and out of Europe. The Government allegedly allowed these planes to land on its territories without adopting any measure to prevent their use for secret detention and rendition. 66 GE.09-17704