Slaughter ruling ‘just not kosher’
BRUSSELS: Jewish and Muslim groups have formed a rare united front to protest a European Court of Justice ruling that animals must be stunned before they are slaughtered.
The court backed a regulation imposed in the Flemish region of Belgium banning the slaughter of livestock that have not been stunned, on the grounds of animal cruelty.
The measure was seen as effectively outlawing the Muslim halal and Jewish kosher traditions, which require livestock to be conscious when their throats are slit.
“The court concludes the measures contained in the decree allow a fair balance to be struck between the importance attached to animal welfare and the freedom of Jewish and Muslim believers to manifest their religion,” the ruling said.
Israel’s foreign ministry lashed out at the verdict as “sending a harsh message to all European Jewry”.
“It signals … that the Jewish way of life is unwanted in Europe,” the ministry said.