Rabat: Morocco could be set to slaughter three million stray dogs in a brutal clean-up bid before hosting the 2030 FIFA World Cup, a report suggested. The pooches could be wiped out from the streets to make the country’s cities look nicer to visiting football fans, it’s been claimed.
Morocco will co-host the 2030 FIFA World Cup alongside Spain and Portugal, marking the tournament’s centennial edition.
The event will feature matches across all three countries, highlighting Morocco’s first opportunity to co-host a World Cup. The country has already begun preparing its infrastructure, aiming to upgrade stadiums and transportation networks to meet FIFA standards.
But it has also reportedly killed thousands of stray dogs, and it’s feared that the numbers could still ramp up as 2030 approaches. The International Animal Coalition is now shining a spotlight on the killings, dubbing it “Morocco’s ugly secret”.
According to the coalition, dogs are poisoned with strychnine – a highly toxic, colourless, and bitter chemical used as a pesticide, particularly for killing small animals such as birds and rodents. The pups are also reportedly shot in the streets, the coalition says, or trapped and transported to facilities where they’re brutally slaughtered.
Many are also said to die in agony after being wounded by gunmen patrolling around the clock, the Daily Mail reports. Despite claims from Moroccan authorities that the brutal campaign stopped in August 2024, the coalition says the killings spiked after FIFA announced Morocco as a host nation in 2023.
With outrage mounting, activists are demanding immediate action to end the slaughter and protect Morocco’s stray dogs.
PNN & Agencies
