Over 16,000 sheep and cattle stranded at sea after Red Sea crisis turn back

Four weeks after sailing for Israel, 16,000 sheep and cattle remain in limbo aboard ship

Sheep aboard the MV Bahijah when it was anchored off the coast of Western Australia. (Pic: WAFarmers via Reuters)

Peter Hobson

Around 16,000 livestock remained in limbo aboard an export ship at an Australian port on Friday, having set sail for Israel exactly four weeks ago only to abandon a passage through the Red Sea and be ordered home by the Australian government.

Biosecurity rules mean the animals - roughly 14,000 sheep and 2,000 cattle - cannot disembark without being quarantined. Officials are yet to decide if they should be let off or sent back to sea for a 33-day voyage to reach Israel by going around Africa.