Iraq
A stray dog pictured on a street in Koya, Kurdistan Region in June 2021. File photo: Bilind T. Abdullah/Rudaw
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A child lost his life after a pack of stray dogs attacked him in Kirkuk on Saturday. He was mauled after leaving school, according to an official.
“The child died at the hospital and was sent to the forensic medical examination” office, Kirkuk health directorate spokesperson Saman Yaba told Rudaw on Saturday.
“He is in the third grade of primary school. He was injured after passing his exams,” Yaba said.
The attack happened outside of two housing projects in Kirkuk - Kirkuk City and Jwan City. When the security guards heard barking, they ran to the site and saw four or five dogs leaving a ditch where they had attacked the child, one of the housing project owners told Rudaw.
An eyewitness said it was a brutal attack.
The large number of stray dogs in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region has long been a concern. The dogs as well as stray cats are often considered a menace and public health risk. Violence against the animals is common. They are shooed away, beaten, hit with sticks, or killed by cars and gunshots.
Animal rights organizations criticize efforts to control the populations. They recommend that dogs be captured, neutered, and released as the most humane option and worry that fights and disease could break out if many dogs are confined in a shelter.
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