In late December 2006, Animals Australia investigators were in Egypt...

...filming thousands of defenseless Australian sheep being dragged, bound with rope, shoved into car boots, tied onto car roofs, and thrown trussed on their backs into trucks.

In Cairo, investigators documented terrified sheep having their throats cut while fully conscious. This is normal, widespread practice in abattoirs and private homes throughout the Middle East.

The Howard Government and Australia's live exporters send millions of animals each year to this fate.

As a result, millions of people in the Middle East believe Australians approve of this brutal treatment of animals due to our willingness to export animals to their countries.

The cruelty and suffering Animals Australia documented in Egypt directly contravenes the 2006 formal agreement between Egypt and the Howard Government to treat Australian animals in accordance with international standards. This 'Memorandum of Understanding' was triumphantly publicized to reassure all Australians that the welfare of Australian animals would be protected.

Watch "Live Exports -- Indefensible": filmed in December 2006, this moving documentary shows the handling of Australian sheep exported to Egypt.

The Howard Government would never even have known that Egypt had flagrantly breached the agreement had Animals Australia not undertaken this investigation.

The Howard Government has seen the documented evidence. And now, despite knowing the agreement is worthless, it will continue to allow the export of Australian animals to an horrific fate in Egypt.

Australia's live export industry and the Howard Government claim that they can help change terrible animal practices in the Middle East. These hypocritical statements are designed to protect profits generated by animal cruelty and to keep the truth from Australian citizens and farmers. They are made by the very same people who condone the trade responsible for the horrendous deaths of over 2 million animals on live export ships.

A few isolated training courses will NEVER counter the belief held throughout Egypt and the entire Middle East that Australians approve of local slaughter and handling practices.

If Australia wants to send the message to the region that cruelty to animals is unacceptable, then the answer is simple. Stop sending our animals. This would send the resounding message to all corners of the Middle East that animal welfare matters.

Australian chilled and frozen meat exports to the Middle East and Egypt represent a more humane alternative. Chilled exports to the region are already more profitable than live exports and are growing each year.

	Sign these important letters Add your name to important letters to Australian politicians who can end this terrible trade, and call on Egyptian Ministers to pass animal protection laws.
	Spread the word Don't let 'out of sight' mean 'out of mind' -- send this important message to your friends and family.
	Fund further investigations in the Middle East Crucial investigations are made possible by donations. With your help, we will continue to reveal the truth and hold industry accountable for this indefensible trade.
	Order a free action pack Get equipped and get your free live export action pack from Animals Australia which contains campaign leaflets, stickers, videos and petitions.