As Colombia moves to outlaw cockfighting, a bloody night unfolds in Cartagena

Cheers erupt at each killing blow in an arena facing extinction after a landmark court ruling

On the outskirts of Cartagena – far from the brightly coloured facades of the old city and the 500-year-old fortress walls overlooking the Caribbean – a crowd of about 300 people erupted into a roar. Given Colombians’ passion for football, it could have been the celebration of a goal.

But the cheers followed the bloody climax of bout in a cockfighting ring whose white padded walls were now splattered with blood.

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