Théo Lalliot Zaid Saad: AL GHAZIL

In Baghdad, multiple species of animals were mistreated and commercialized in a big animal market.

Every Friday, Iraqis rush to the Republic Street in the ancient Baghdad. Al-Ghazil, a market that has become a landmark in the capital where advantages and joy arise amid the distress of animals.

From the mosque AL-khulafa till the square of Wathba, this old market stretches on a half kilometer on one of the most jammed streets in the Iraqi capital. Originally, this souk once housed spinning workshops from which comes the Arabic name “Ghazil”. Giving the advent of the industrialization and the societal changes, this ancient profession has disappeared giving way to the famous animal souk, a place visited by animal lovers to satisfy the passion for different species; peacocks, ducks, parrots, huskies, monkeys, snakes as well as endangered species.

Animals in captivity; an expensive pleasure:

Traditionally, this souk is heavily frequented on Fridays, a lot of Iraqis chose to spend their weekend there. The animals clog the lines of the walkway but not only, we hear the vendors negotiating the price of these animals with a fervent clientele, a pleasure that ends between the two parties into lucrative and personal goals, this testifies to the widespread poaching phenomenon in a country whose ecosystem is deteriorating due to the consequences of climate change and lack of public awareness of biodiversity conservation.

Creatures deprived of their dignity:

In 50 degrees Celsius under the scorching sun of Baghdad, the camera has captured animals in horrible conditions; birds desperate of air and stuffed in boxes, monkeys imprisoned in little cages, peacocks with their wings tied with a piece of cloth and huskies out of breath, this shows exclusively a small part of the misery lived by these poor creatures.

Zaid Saad