At the Karantina slaughterhouse in Beirut, which supplies a third of the meat in the Lebanese capital, animals were being picked up and slammed onto their backs on the concrete floor, where they were held down as their throats were cut while they were fully conscious. Sheep were dragged by one hind leg to a line where they are slaughtered alongside others that were thrashing around in blood and faeces.

Time stood still while I watched sheep after sheep meet its end. It seemed to go on forever.

-Investigator

The treatment these animals face contravenes the guidelines of the OIE (World Organisation for Animal Health) of which Lebanon is a member.

Karantina investigator's account

"The sheep were led across the slaughter area, forced to jump over the body of a half-skinned cow and cross large gutters filled with blood and other waste. Once gathered at the other side of the slaughter house the sheep, one by one, were taken by the feet and flipped violently onto their backs. They were lined up, pushed against each other and restrained by workers’ feet to have their throats cut. In the struggle sheep were slipping and slamming their faces and chests on to the concrete. The waiting sheep were clearly terrified and pushed against the rest of the flock in an attempt to get away from the slaughter line. Time stood still while I watched sheep after sheep meet its end. It seemed to go on forever."

"Two huge bulls were led from the holding area to the slaughter area, pulled forwards using ropes around their necks. The bulls fought back desperately, they slipped and fell multiple times and repeatedly smashed their faces on the concrete. Meanwhile their legs were getting caught in the bars of the walk way and in the gutters. The staff were shouting and yelling at them and violently hit them with metal bars. One bull was held back by its tail. They were then hoisted up from a hind leg but fought to remain upright. Ropes around their necks were then used to drag the animals into position. In their final moments the workers held the animals’ heads back, to cut the throat, by grasping their eye sockets violently. This is some of the worst slaughter I’ve ever witnessed."

Slaughter investigations