UN: Herpes outbreak behind mass-death of Iraqi carp
The shocking death last year of thousands of tonnes of Iraq's freshwater carp was caused by a strain of herpes harmless to humans, the United Nations said on Wednesday. Iraqi fish farmers south of Baghdad were left reeling in late 2018 when they woke to find large sections of the Euphrates river surface covered in waves […]The shocking death last year of thousands of tonnes of Iraq's freshwater carp was caused by a strain of herpes harmless to humans, the United Nations said on Wednesday.
Iraqi fish farmers south of Baghdad were left reeling in late 2018 when they woke to find large sections of the Euphrates river surface covered in waves of dead, floating carp. The Ministry of Health issued a warning urging people not to buy or consume fish – for weeks Iraqis longed for their national dish, Masgoof, carp cooked over a wood-fire.
Iraqi politicians quickly moved the issue to the top of the agenda, as rumours swirled over whether the fish were sick or the river had been poisoned.
