A decision issued by Egypt’s Agriculture Ministry preventing the transfer of animals across governorates borders to halt the spread of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) prevented the transfer of over 10,000 camels across the Egyptian-Sudanese border on Tuesday.
An additional 6,000 camels are currently stuck in a Suez quarry and on a commercial ship anchored in the Red Sea Port. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Agriculture is considering exempting camels from the decision.
The Association of Camel Importers threatened to protest against the ministry’s decision to ban the transfer of animals that are not susceptible to FMD.
They threatened to surround the Ministry of Agriculture and cabinet building with thousands of camels and to cut off the roads connecting the border crossings with Delta governorates through which some 250,000 camels are transferred annually and which provide 40 percent of meat in the domestic market.
Translated from Al-Masry Al-Youm
