ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Authorities in Erbil have shut down a butcher shop after discovering it was illegally slaughtering foxes and selling the meat to people, the city’s mayor said on Wednesday.
Nabaz Abdulhamid, Mayor of Erbil, told Rudaw that the closure came as part of ongoing market inspections carried out by joint committees from the province.
"As part of the work of the governorate's joint committees and the ongoing campaign for market inspection and monitoring, a store… had secretly and illegally slaughtered foxes and sold the meat to people," Abdulhamid said.
He stressed that foxes are protected as part of Kurdistan Region’s wildlife, rendering their slaughter and sale illegal. "The shop was closed, and legal action was taken against the owner and the individuals who were working there," the mayor added.
Abdulhamid also warned that selling meat from wild animals poses serious risks beyond environmental damage. He explained that such practices are prohibited not only because they violate wildlife protection laws, but also because they threaten public health “from both a medical and veterinary perspective.”
The Erbil mayorship said its inspection campaigns will continue in an effort to safeguard consumers and enforce regulations, warning that any business found in violation will face legal penalties.
Despite annual arrests topping 1,000, poaching remains a persistent problem across the Kurdistan Region, according to Fuad, spokesperson for the Forest and Environmental Police directorate.
"More than a thousand poachers are arrested annually. There have been years when arrests reached two thousand poachers," Zrari told Rudaw in July.
The rangers work out of 66 bases trying to prevent illegal hunting, trapping and poaching. The Kurdistan Region is home to a variety of wild animals including gazelles, leopards, deer, bear, boar, and many species of birds. Zrari said deer are one of the animals most popularly hunted.
Between 2008 and 2010, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) enacted a series of environmental protection laws, including a ban on hunting, aimed at safeguarding the Region’s wildlife and natural habitats.
Despite these measures, illegal hunting continues to intensify environmental challenges in the Kurdistan Region, compounding problems such as deforestation, habitat loss, and climate change impacts, including drought. Wildlife trafficking-where animals are captured for sale as pets, fur, or food-has further worsened the situation.
Solin Hamadamin contributed to this article from Erbil.