See The Barbaric Festival Where A Live Goat Is Ripped Apart By Villagers Using Bare Hands And Teeth (Photos)

The Deopokhari festival, which is held every year in August, in the village of Khokana, one of the oldest villages in the Kathmandu Valley in central Nepal, is a cultural festival during which a live goat is ripped apart by villagers using their bare hands and teeth.

The 900-year-old festival which has sparked outrage among animal rights campaigners, is a celebration of the culture of the Newari people, the indigenous people of the area around the Kathmandu Valley, and features traditional dancing, music and food.

Animal rights campaigners have branded the celebration ‘barbaric’, as part of the ceremony sees a young female goat brutally sacrificed. World-renowned animals rights charity, PETA has joined the campaign, highlighting the damage that the uniquely savage and disgusting festival does to Nepal's international reputation.

The charity's UK director, Mimi Bekhechi, said: 'The Khokana festival demonstrates only obliviousness to world opinion, disrespect for life and an almost uniquely savage and disgusting display of cruelty. There are few living beings as gentle and defenceless as baby goats, the victims of this barbarous act.'

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