The ordeal of transporting live animals to war zones: “EU intervention is needed to stop it”

Wars continue to claim thousands of victims in every corner of the Earth, bringing local populations to their knees but also the animals that have to transit these high-risk areas. The transportation of live animals does not stop in the midst of conflict.

Loads of livestock continue to arrive towards Israel and Lebanon by ship. Over 100 European shipments have headed to Israel since the start of the war. They are cows and sheep exported from countries such as Ireland, Romania, Croatia, Slovenia, Hungary and Lithuania and forced to make exhausting journeys to be slaughtered in foreign slaughterhouses.

However, many die during these distressing journeys during attacks launched by opposing military forces. Raids, missiles, stress and mistreatment perpetuated by employees are the harsh reality that these animals experience.

Near Haifa, Israel, several dairy farms were hit by rockets, resulting in the death of a large number of cows. Haifa itself, located in the north of the Jewish state, is a hot spot both for its location and for the landing of animals.

The port of Haifa is the largest in all of Israel. Cattle from Europe converge here, but this port is located about 40 km from the border with Lebanon. Once they reach their destination, the animals are subjected to quarantine or fattening, but must survive the counteroffensive.

They report wounds, injuries, traumas. To speed up port unloading operations, workers use electric prods so that the animals get off the ships without wasting another second. Their suffering is a crescendo.

For this reason the protectionist organizations of the European coalition Eurogroup for Animals, in collaboration with Ethical Farming Ireland and eight other NGOs, they approached the European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, Stella Kyriakides, sending a letter to suspend live exports.

As active members of Eurogroup for Animals we join the request made to the European Commission: it is essential to block these transports by ship, which have always been extremely problematic for animals but are now even more critical due to the terrible war in Israel and Lebanon. It is time to put an end to these cruel transports, which also expose local operators to further risks with serious repercussions on human safety and the mistreatment of animals” declare the Italian associations Animal Equality, Animal Law Italia, CIWF Italia,essere Animali and LAV.

There needs to be a stop to the transport of live animals to war zones with immediate effect.