§ 65. Mr. Bellengerasked the Secretary of State for Defence how many incidents have occurred in Cyprus of British troops being disarmed by Cypriot irregulars; and what orders have been issued to troops concerning the action they are to take when confronted with such incidents.
§ Mr. ThorneycroftOne. As regards orders issued for dealing with this sort of contingency, paragraph 18 of theaide memoire from the United Nations which has been placed in the library of the House quotes "attempts by force to 102W disarm them" as an example of circumstances in which troops might be authorised to use force. The soldier concerned in this incident therefore showed commendable self-restraint in not reacting with force to this provocation.