In The UK, Booties To Be Issued to Police Sniffer Dogs That Enter Muslim Homes

Recently a couple of news stories were reported dealing with dogs, and Muslims being offended at the police using them, saying dogs are unclean. The Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo) will start using booties for the dogs that enter Muslim homes.

First there was a situation where the Muslim population in a Scottish district were offended by the use of a puppy sitting in a police hat that was used on postcards sent out by the police to advertise their non-emergency phone numbers.

(Post card that offended the Muslim population in a Scottish district)

It was later reported that dogs called terrorist sniffer dogs, used at railway stations in the wake of the 2005 London suicide bomb attacks, were being complained about for the same reason, that they were "spiritually unclean".

Since then the Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo) has been drawing up guidelines, which are due to be published this year, and they will encourage awareness of religious sensitivities.

Originally the guidelines were designed for mosques but are being expanded to include other buildings, such a Muslim homes.

In those guidelines, if Muslims object to the use of the sniffer dogs, then they will only be used in "exceptional" cases and when they are used they will have to wear little booties with rubber soles.

According to Acpo "We are trying to ensure that police forces are aware of sensitivities that people can have with the dogs to make sure they are not going against any religious or cultural element within people’s homes. It is being addressed and forces are working towards doing it."

One leading British Imam, Ibrahim Mogra, disagrees with these new guidelines, saying "Acpo needs to consult better and more widely."

He contends that "In Islamic law the dog is not regarded as impure, only its saliva is. Most Islamic schools of law agree on that. If security measures require to send a dog into a house, then it has to be done." He then concludes by saying, "I know in the Muslim community there is a hang-up against dogs, but this is cultural. Also, we know the British like dogs; we Muslims should do our bit to change our attitudes.”

For those unaware, an Imam, is described in the Brittanica Encyclopedia as "the head of the Muslim community; the title is used in the Qurʾān several times to refer to leaders and to Abraham."

Is Mogra correct that Acpo is going overboard and needs to do a little more homework?