Sacrifices offered during the Islamic festival of Eid al-Adha have actually caused the streets in one city to run red with the blood of thousands of slaughtered animals.
The Guardian reported heavy rain and poor drainage systems combined with the torrent of blood from cows, sheep and goats to flood the streets of the Bangladeshi capital of Dhaka with bright red rivers.
Animal sacrifices as part of the Islamic festival of Eid al-Adha have combined with rain in Dhaka to form rivers of blood in the streets of the Bangladeshi capital.
Poor drainage in the city makes flooding a regular fact of Dhaka life. But the problem is rarely illustrated as vividly as it was on Tuesday, after thousands of sheep, goats and cows were slaughtered.
(Photo: Twitter)
(Photo: Twitter)
(Photo: Twitter)
Eid al-Adha, also known as the “Festival of the Sacrifice,” is an Islamic holiday commemorating the time when God asked Abraham to sacrifice his son in a test of faith.
According to the report, one city resident said he was disturbed by the scene, especially as some Muslim families went out to “wade into the flood” in celebration of the holiday.
“I felt I was walking through a post-apocalyptic neighbourhood,” said Atish Saha, a Dhaka-based artist. “To be honest, I was scared. It was an image of mass violence that shouldn’t ever be experienced.”
Particularly jarring was said to be the sight of families, including infants, wading into the flood in celebratory “Eid day” moods. “It made me speechless,” he said.
The city had set up designated sacrificing areas across the city, the Guardian explained. However, most Muslims decided to forgo these spots in favor of slaughtering the animals in their garages or neighborhood streets. Even as city workers labored to fix the city’s poor drainage system that had contributed to the blood and rain buildup, dirt roads were still littered with blood and animal entrails by Wednesday morning, the Guardian stated.
Despite the macabre scene, still more animal sacrifices are expected on Wednesday.
Check out a video of the city's streets filmed by one resident below: