Israeli politician mocked for cat exportation idea

An Israeli cabinet minister has drawn outrage and mockery after suggesting transferring the thousands of stray cats that walk the streets to another country.

A feline friend Image by Takashi Hososhima / CC BY 2.0

The Yediot daily published what it said was a letter by agriculture minister Uri Ariel, from the Jewish Home party, proposing the idea. It said he cited Jewish law against animal cruelty as reason not to neuter cats and a biblical commandment to populate the earth.

Opposition politician Tzipi Livni posted a picture on her Facebook page of her playing with a black and white cat. “No way will I get a foreign passport for little one,” she wrote. Israeli animal rights activists condemned the minister.

(Press Association)