Iraqi court sentences Najaf butcher to 10 years for selling spoiled pork as beef and mutton

An Iraqi court on Monday sentenced a butcher to 10 years in prison for selling pork deemed unfit for human consumption while presenting it to customers as beef or mutton, according to Iraq’s Supreme Judicial Council.

The Najaf Criminal Court issued the sentence after authorities seized approximately 75 kilograms of meat from the defendant, the council said in a statement.

According to the judiciary, the butcher had marketed the meat as livestock meat despite it being pork and considered unsuitable for human consumption.

The court based its ruling on a 1998 law criminalizing the sale of dog, donkey and other meat deemed unfit for human consumption.

The case centered on the sale of unsafe meat and its misrepresentation to consumers. Iraqi law does not impose a blanket prohibition on the sale of pork, which can be consumed by members of the country’s non-Muslim communities.

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The case attracted particular attention because it occurred in Najaf, one of the most important religious centers for Shia Muslims and home to the shrine of Imam Ali. The city receives large numbers of religious pilgrims each year.

The butcher’s arrest earlier this month also prompted discussion over food-safety inspections and oversight of meat sold by local businesses.

Some residents told AFP they had previously purchased meat from the shop without knowing it was pork. Customer Ahmed al-Mansouri said he had regularly bought minced meat there because of its price and what he considered its good quality before learning of the case.

Another resident, Mahmoud al-Khafaji, said he had also eaten meat purchased from the shop and expressed concern about the way the case had been portrayed as reflecting more broadly on Najaf’s residents.

Local residents said publicity surrounding the case had made some consumers more cautious about purchasing minced meat and kebabs from shops in the neighbourhood, amid concerns about food safety and product labelling.

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