 "Morocco plans culling 3 million stray dogs ahead of Fifa World Cup, report sparks outrage")
Morocco plans to cull up to 3 million stray dogs to clean its streets for the 2030 Fifa World Cup, facing backlash from people around the world. Morocco is co-hosting the 2030 Fifa World Cup alongside Spain and Portugal.
The North African nation aims to improve the appearance of its cities for the tourists expected to visit during the tournament.
Meanwhile, Animal welfare organizations and activists around the world are criticising the initiative.
‘Cruel and illegal ways to kill dogs’
Moroccan authorities are using cruel and illegal ways to cull the stray dogs. These methods include poisoning them with a deadly chemical called strychnine, shooting them in public, and reportedly beating surviving dogs to death with shovels, The Daily Mail reported.
The International Animal Welfare and Protection Coalition (IAWPC) has said that up to three million dogs could be killed in this campaign. The organisation also launched a campaign titled “Morocco’s Ugly Secret”.
“Almost every day, individuals acting on behalf of the Moroccan Government, tour the streets: Shooting dogs around the clock armed with rifles and pistols. Rarely killed outright, wounding is a major consequence. Poisoning dogs using either ‘stick’ type implements with a syringe on the end containing the poison, to stab the unsuspecting dogs in the body, or through the alternative method of feeding them poisoned bait by hand,” IAWPC said.
Famous primatologist and animal rights advocate Jane Goodall has criticised the cruel methods and urged FIFA to take action. In an open letter, Goodall asked FIFA to suspend Morocco’s hosting rights if the killings continue and called for immediate action to stop them.
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View All“I am equally appalled to learn from the IAWPC - International Animal Coalition that you have been presented with detailed dossiers documenting these horrific acts, most of which are conducted in the most brutal and cruel fashion imaginable, and yet appear to have ignored them,” she wrote in the letter.
Horrific visuals on social media
Multiple videos emerged on social media showing stray dogs in Morocco suffering on the streets. One YouTube clip showed a dog lying in a pool of blood, while another showed a small dog being held upside down by a catcher before being thrown into a truck full of frightened dogs.
Click here to watch the video (caution: contents in the video could be disturbing).
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