Clashes erupt over Egypt pig cull

[JI7]

Source: bbc

Egyptian pig farmers have clashed with police in Cairo, as they tried to stop their animals being slaughtered.

Hundreds of people at the Manshiyat Nasr slum threw stones and bottles at police who responded with tear gas and rubber bullets.

Egypt's pigs mostly belong to the Coptic Christian minority who say the cull has reignited religious tensions.

Pig-farming and consumption is concentrated in Egypt's Coptic Christian minority, estimated at 10% of the population.

Many are reared in slum areas by rubbish collectors who use the pigs to dispose of organic waste. They say the cull will harm their businesses and has renewed tensions with Egypt's Muslim majority.

Read more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8031490.stm