About 1.6 thousand calves not accepted by other countries will be killed in the Spanish port

Around 1,600 calves that spent more than four months on a ship in the Mediterranean will be killed in the Spanish port of Cartagena

The ship El Elbeik, carrying more than 1,700 animals at the time, left the Spanish port of Tarragona in mid-December. The calves were supposed to be unloaded in Turkey, but the authorities refused to accept the cattle for fear of blue tongue disease. The ship then searched the Mediterranean for another port of discharge to no avail and returned to Spain on 14 March.

After an examination in Cartagena, veterinarians confirmed the fears of Turkish colleagues, witnessing the death of almost 200 calves. They also concluded that the rest of the animals were in very poor condition under crowded conditions.

"The company (operator) must isolate and, without undue suffering, destroy these animals for sanitary reasons and for the welfare of the animals themselves," a source in the Ministry of Agriculture said.

This is the second "hecatomb" that will take place in Cartagena in the last month. In early March, several hundred calves were slaughtered in the port and made a similar journey across the Mediterranean on the Karim Allah and returned to Spain. The Spanish authorities say that at the moment the ship went to sea, a certificate was issued that all the calves were healthy.