IN IMAGES: IN THE TOURISM INDUSTRY IN EGYPT

PETA demands end to animal exploitation at tourist sites, with revelations of weak and injured animals forced to carry tourists under a blazing sun

Brussels - A new PETA Asia survey shot in major tourist destinations in Egypt - including the Cheops pyramid, Saqqara and Luxor - reveals the serious abuse of horses and camels forced to carry visitors on their backs or in horse-drawn carriages. the stifling heat without shade, food or water.
Witnesses also reported that camels were being beaten at the Birqash camel market before being sold to tourism industry players.
Consequently, PETA demands that the use of working animals on tourist sites is prohibited in Egypt.

The video shows handlers in Giza hitting a mare who had collapsed when she was forced to pull a carriage.
Her fall had seriously injured her and she was lying on her side, but they continued to hit her until she got up.
Many horses used for walks in Giza and Luxor suffered painful and bloody wounds and were forced to wait under the blazing sun for the arrival of the next client, without water, food, or access to shade.
Emaciated horses whose ribs were seen were being dragged and whipped.
And at the infamous Birqash Camel Market, men and children beat camels violently with sticks, while animals screamed in pain.
Most of them had bloody faces and one of them had foamy mouths.

"It is a shame that in Egypt exhausted and emaciated animals are beaten and whipped to constantly tow visitors under a blazing sun, while their paws give way under the weight of their load and collapse",
says Elisa Allen, director of PETA.
"PETA is asking the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism to replace these maltreated animals with modern means of locomotion, such as electric carts, so that tourists can enjoy the rich history of the country without supporting animal cruelty. "

PETA, whose motto says that

"Animals do not belong to us and we do not have to put them through any form of abuse",

indicates that when camels sold at the Birqash market are no longer able to carry tourists around the pyramids of Giza and Saqqara, they are sent back to the market to finish at the slaughterhouse.

PETA's letter to Tourism Minister Rania Al-Mashat is available on request.

For more information, visit PETA.org.uk.