Cattle disease wreaks havoc among farmers in western Libya

The outbreak in Libya has dealt a major blow to many cattle farmers, who said they have yet to receive vaccines for their animals as dairy and meat production suffers. — AFP

TRIPOLI: Islam Alatrash On Najmeddine Tantoun’s farm on the outskirts of the western Libyan city of Misrata, the usual whir of hundreds of dairy milking machines has given way to near silence.

The farmer has lost almost half his cows to an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease, a highly contagious illness affecting hoofed animals.