Police raided an event its organizers unscrupulously called "Rooster Festival" in the southern city of Adana yesterday and saved 61 fighting cocks.

Acting on a tip, police stormed a dilapidated building in the city's Seyhan district. Inside they found a crowd of men gathered around a ring where bloodied cocks were fighting. Police detained five men who organized the event and 50 from the crowd who were betting on the cocks on charges of gambling and animal abuse. The organizers were released pending trial and the 50 others were fined. The cocks the police seized were handed to the local animal health authority.

Cockfighting is a pastime dating back at least 6,000 years. It is strictly banned in Turkey and many other countries due to prevalent animal abuse and gambling.