Syria denies the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease and talks about attempts to harm its trade economy

Director of Public Relations at the Syrian General Authority of Ports and Customs, Mazen Alloush, denied the spread of foot-and-mouth disease among livestock in Syria, stressing that livestock export operations would continue normally, after an Iraqi decision to stop the crossing of live animals coming from Syria towards Iraq and the Gulf countries, according to what was reported by Syria TV.

Alloush told Syria TV that the news circulating about the spread of the disease is “incorrect and not based on any official reports,” noting that the Syrian authorities continue to coordinate with the Ministry of Agriculture and the Iraqi authorities “to address this file and stop any unjustified measures that would harm the interests of breeders, merchants, and the trade exchange movement between the two countries.”

He added that the export of Syrian livestock “continues normally through Jordan and Syrian ports,” stressing that “no health observations or objections have been recorded from the competent authorities in the importing countries.”

Alloush accused “beneficiary parties” of trying to divert transit and trade routes away from Iraq and harming transit traffic through Syrian territory.

The Iraqi Ministry of Agriculture announced on Friday that it would stop the passage of live animals coming from Syria towards Iraq and the Gulf countries, in a measure it described as a “temporary preventive and precautionary measure” to protect livestock.

The Ministry said, in a statement published on its official platforms, that the decision came after “accurate information was received confirming the spread of foot-and-mouth disease” in a number of Syrian governorates, adding that health and veterinary measures are “applied firmly and without discrimination” based on official reports and epidemiological monitoring systems.

The Iraqi Ministry confirmed that the goal of the decision is to protect livestock and food security and prevent the transmission of cross-border diseases, while warning against “spreading misleading information” related to the veterinary procedures followed.