Almost 900 cattle on cargo ship face cull in Spain

Nearly 900 cattle that have been on a ship traveling the Mediterranean Sea for two months face being culled after veterinarians deemed them no longer fit for export, Spanish authorities said.

A total of 895 cattle set sail from the Spanish port of Cartagena on 18 December on board the Karim Allah cargo ship, destined for export to Turkey.

Turkish port authorities, however, refused to let them disembark, reportedly due to suspicions about their health.

After a second failed attempt to unload the cattle in Libya, the boat returned to Cartagena, where Spanish authorities ordered it to dock on Thursday.

After an official inspection by government veterinarians, Spain's minister of agriculture said the animals were to be culled.

The veterinarians judged them to be both unfit for transport to another country of their return to Spain, the minister added.

The ministry said the cattle originally left Spain with the proper health authorisations.

Animal rights groups have denounced the imminent slaughter of the livestock.