Official blames govt. for deterioration in animal wealth

ARBIL / IraqiNews.com: The director of the veterinary department in Rawinduz has attributed the decreasing number of livestock animals to the government’s negligence and a lack of veterinary medicines. “Animals in Rawinduz and the whole region are endangered,” Dr. Darseem Mulla Mohammed told IraqiNews.com news agency. Mohammed has cited recent statistics showing that there are 37,577 livestock animals in 44 villages in Rawinduz owned by 153 persons. The director has attributed the decrease in the number of animals to what he described as the government’s lack of concern for animal welfare. Rawinduz lies 130 km north of Arbil, the capital city of Iraq’s Kurdistan region, which lies 360 km north of Baghdad. SS (P)/SR 1