In winter of 2009, the world woke up to news of massive massacre of the pig population in Egypt, which came in the wake of the spread of Swine Flu which; prompting fears of an epidemic in Egypt. The official numbers state that over 300,000 pigs have been executed in the government campaign. Unofficial stats bring the figure up to almost 2 million, according to the Head of the Zabbaleeen (Garbage Collectors) Syndicate, Shehata Al Maqdasy.

In a Saturday interview with local publication Dostor, Al Maqdasy further announced that the pigs' population in Cairo is recovering well, having reached 800,000 which consume more than 5 tons of garbage a day, playing a crucial role in getting rid of the city's garbage on daily basis.

Al Maqdasy also said that the syndicate is aiming to grow the pigs' population even further to reach 2 million by the end of 2018 to further assist with the garbage situation.

"The streets of Cairo no longer have garbage because the pigs are eating them all," said Al Maqdasy to Dostor. Ishaq Mikhail, who owns a pig farm in Cairo's Hay Al Zabbalein, also said that the population is recovering at a markedly fast pace, with hopes of reaching pre-massacre numbers of 3 million to further assist with ridding of the city's garbage.

Main Photo: CNN Arabic