Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the government of Israel concerning its reported policy of setting dogs on civilians.

We have not had any discussions with the Israeli authorities over this issue. We do understand, however, that the Operations Commander in the Central Command of the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) has ordered a halt to the use of dogs in arrest missions until the procedure is reviewed. The IDF is investigating an incident in which IDF soldiers used dogs to stop Palestinians accused of stone-throwing near Hebron. An IDF official said the soldiers’ behaviour was improper, and would be met with disciplinary measures.