Armed Men Allegedly Kill 29 Dogs, Social Media Demands Action Against 'Monsters'

A group of armed men allegedly entered a gated area in Qatar and gunned down 29 dogs.

The killings were reportedly in response to someone’s claim that an animal had bitten their child.

The armed men threatened security personnel with guns before entering the guarded factory premises. The dogs were sheltered in the factory premises as part of a community that shelters, feeds, and cares for stray cats and dogs, Doha News reported.

An animal welfare group, Paw Rescue Qatar, narrated the alarming incident in an Instagram post. They wrote the unidentified men allegedly announced to the security they were going to shoot the dogs because a pup had bitten one of the armed men’s sons.

“They preceded to then shoot 29 dogs and puppies and left several others badly injured,” Paw Rescue Qatar said in its post, “These are the dogs that were being fed and cared for in a managed Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) way, food was being donated by rescuers, these were friendly happy dogs.”

TNR is the most humanitarian and efficient strategy for managing and reducing the number of feral and stray cats.

The number of men who entered the premises was not clear.

The security crew tried to prevent the men from shooting a group of neutered dogs, but they were unable to do so as they were in the line of danger, Doha News reported.

The appalling killings of the stray canines have sparked fury on social media. Many took to the internet to question the integrity of the assailants.

An Instagram user wrote, “Monsters who run around with guns killing animals are also monsters that can kill humans. I hope the authorities know about them. Please don't let this slide”

“This is an act of sociopathy. The people who blatantly killed all the dogs have to be put in jail, disregarding their nationality,” Roni Helou, an animal rights sustainability brand, condemned the barbaric act and urged the government to take action, “They are a threat to the Qatari society. Whoever can kill an animal without a blink of an eye, can easily kill a human being.”

Several people also expressed their concerns over the relaxed laws that allowed civilians to own guns in Qatar.

Qatari officials have yet to respond to the event. In an Instagram post, Sheikha Al Mayasa bint Hamad Al Thani, the sister of Qatar's reigning Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, condemned the incident and termed it "unacceptable."