A ship carrying 14,000 sheep and 2,000 cattle has run aground off the west coast of Australia after failing to reach its original destination in Israel. The vessel, MV Bahijah, left Australia for Israel on January 5, but threats from Houthi rebels in the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea forced the ship to change course in mid-January.
LOOK. Thousands of animals are trapped on the Bahija ship off the west coast of Australia
The ship is currently not allowed to dock in Australia. It is therefore unclear what will happen to the animals on board. The animals may be unloaded in Australia, after which they will have to be quarantined due to safety regulations, or the ship may be sent back to Israel, resulting in a longer route around Africa and major delays. Another option is to unload some of the animals and take the rest to Israel.
Stress, heat, limited ventilation and dirty accommodation
Animal rights organizations are concerned about the welfare of the animals due to the high temperatures of almost 40 degrees in Oceania. Although Australia’s Department of Agriculture claims the animals are currently in good health, animal rights activists dispute this.
Rebecca Tapp, a spokesperson for Stop Live Exports, an organization that opposes the export of live animals, expressed concern about the situation. She stressed that the animals have been at sea for 24 days and are exposed to stress from heat and limited ventilation. Their quarters on board are also said to be very polluted.
Stop Live Exports prefers the option of landing the animals in Australia and placing them in quarantine: “Leaving the animals on the ship even longer and certainly the idea of sending them back out to sea for 33 days is cruel.”
Sea transport of animals is a major problem in Australia
This incident has reignited discussions about the maritime transport of live animals in Australia. Hundreds of thousands of sheep and cattle are exported by sea every year. Most cattle go to Asia, but the sheep mainly go to the Middle East, where Israel is the main customer.
In New Zealand, the export of live animals was already banned after a ship carrying more than 5,800 cattle sank in 2020.
Several Australian politicians are now also expressing their concerns. The social democratic Labor government wants to ban the export of animals, but is facing opposition from farmers’ organizations that fear job losses.
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