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Horses and camels used to transport tourists at a major Egyptian tourist destination near the pyramids are being slaughtered and dumped, an investigation has claimed.
Disturbing video footage shared Independent Shows animal corpses which campaigners say Left to rot just outside the Great Pyramid complex at GizaDespite recent improvements to protect them.
According to welfare group PETA, the victims are used for tourist rides until their bodies deteriorate. Some are left to die in the heat while others “Just worked till death” And dumped near the Giza Plateau, the group says.
investigation by PETA The latest in a series of revelations on Asia’s dark underbelly egyptTourism industry.
The animal rights organization warned on Saturday that the opening of a major new archaeological museum nearby – the long-awaited $1 billion Grand Egyptian Museum – would bring huge numbers of tourists to the area and potentially put more animals at risk.
In blurry footage, which The Independent has chosen not to show, horse carcasses are seen lying amid piles of rubbish in Cairo.
A PETA spokesperson said, “They are often bludgeoned to death or left to die among the piles of bodies dumped outside the pyramids.” “From the camels Tourism “Industries also sell their meat to slaughterhouses.”
Previous investigations in Egypt have shown that horses, emaciated due to malnutrition, are left to die in ‘cemeteries’ out of sight, with rope ‘handles’ pierced through their skin. One found that camels were killed in front of each other and even in front of children.
It has been claimed that camels no longer considered useful can have their throats cut while still fully conscious. Independent Disturbing scenes of animals left to bleed to death in public places, away from tourists.
Investigators have documented since 2019 how animals in the pyramids are created to transport visitors during vacations or to serve as photo props in the sweltering heat without access to adequate food, water or shade.
Despite Egypt’s pledge to protect animals at archaeological sites, investigators this year said they found abandoned horses and camels just outside the walls of the ticketed area in the Giza Plateau every day.
Jason Baker, vice president of PETA Asia, called on Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to allocate a portion of the new museum’s profits to build a sanctuary to relocate and retire the animals on the plateau, “giving these sensitive, complex creatures, who have worked and suffered there, finally the chance to live free and happily”.
The organization also urges tourists to decline camel and horse rides and photo opportunities Travel Companies should stop promoting them or including them in their tours. They advise tourists to talk to their hotel or travel agencies if they see animals being mistreated.
Following an investigation by PETA Asia last year, several reforms were made as major travel companies such as Airbnb stopped advertising animal tourism at the Giza pyramid complex.
The Egyptian Minister of Tourism initiated a program to care for and protect animals at archaeological sites, and a bus transportation system was established as an option to protect the tourism industry without harming animals.
The Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities had earlier promised to bring about substantial reforms after a preliminary investigation in 2019 documented animal abuse at top tourist destinations.
But investigators showed in 2023 and 2024 that working animals were also beaten when they were too tired and killed for meat when unable to work.
A PETA spokesperson said, “Sadly, we have not seen any meaningful change.” “Some efforts were made to provide water and shade for the animals, but these have proven inadequate, and water troughs often remain empty.”
“There have been many promises of improvement from the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities which have not been fulfilled.
“Veterinary care was promised, yet horses and camels are still found with untreated wounds and injuries, camels with terrible scabies, and animals left to die rather than receive veterinary treatment or humane relief from their suffering.
“Buses are available to visitors as a means of transportation, but the Egyptian government still allows the use of animals on site, but very little will change. The only way to end this abuse and suffering is for authorities to remove all horses and camels and retire them to a sanctuary.”
Independent The Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities has been contacted for comment.