Author: Lila Arzua
Publication: Washington Post
Date: February 2, 2004
The custom of sacrificing lambs
to mark the end of the Muslim hajj has caused controversy in the rural
Prince William County town of Haymarket, where some residents say an illegal
slaughterhouse is being operated in their neighborhood.
The issue is a pen that contained
dozens of lambs that were being killed yesterday and then sold to families
celebrating Islam's most sacred holiday, Eid-al-Adha, which commemorates
sacrifice at the end of the annual pilgrimage to Mecca.
Neighbors said they were outraged
over the animals' treatment. They alerted authorities, complained to police
about the traffic and expressed concerns about possible environmental damage.
"There were so many sheep crammed
up in this little pen, they had to jump up to get a breath," said neighbor
Helen Marmoll, who lives across Route 15.
The property owner, Ahmed Rababeh,
said he had about 85 lambs delivered to the site Friday. Yesterday, he
said his workers began slaughtering them in customary Islamic halal fashion:
The lambs were hung by their hind legs, their throats were cut and their
blood was collected in a barrel. They were then skinned, gutted and sold
whole.
Marmoll said she and other neighbors
were concerned that before their slaughter, the animals had been packed
in without water and food. But Rababeh said he fed the lambs Saturday morning.
Other neighbors said that although
they could not hear anything, their horses and other livestock were disturbed
by the slaughter, which attracted a horde of vultures to the area.
Outrage over the slaughter was the
latest incident in a long-simmering neighborhood controversy over the pen
and an adjacent structure that Rababeh has been building on his 51/2 acres
on Route 15. Residents say they constitute an illegal slaughterhouse in
a residential and agricultural area.
On Thursday, Prince William's code
enforcement officials placed a "stop work" order on the property, according
to Supervisor John T. Stirrup Jr. (R-Gainesville), who represents the area.
Stirrup said he believes that yesterday's
slaughter of the lambs defied that order and could cost Rababeh a fine
of $425 a day. The supervisor, who lives about a mile from Rababeh's property,
said the slaughter caused traffic problems because customers parked illegally.
He added that constituents have raised concerns that sheep remains could
harm the environment.
"When they're slaughtered like this,
that's an awful lot of blood," Stirrup said. "If the blood . . . is going
into a resource protection area or if it reaches the brook, we're talking
about a serious contamination problem."
Rababeh, who said he previously
conducted the slaughter in Loudoun County, described the current situation
as a "misunderstanding" with Prince William County. He said his architect
is helping him appeal the order.
"We have the right to do this,"
said Rababeh, who said inspectors told him he could continue if he made
sure no blood or waste ended up on the ground or in the nearby creek. He
said he has contracted with a company to clean up today and tomorrow. "I
am paying good money for professional people to do it," he said.
He denied that his operation caused
traffic problems yesterday, adding that Route 15 was often crowded but
that he had ample customer parking.
Kim D. Chinn, a Prince William police
spokeswoman, said officers were at the scene directing traffic. "Evidently,
there's a lot of people out there," Chinn said.
The lambs sell for $150 apiece.
Rababeh said they are traditionally shared with friends, neighbors and
the needy.
