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The nightmarish scene on the streets of Dhaka saw busy streets run red with blood following the brutal slaughter of thousands of animals in just one day. The terrified animals were sacrificed in front of cheering crowds for the Islamic holiday. Residents described an "apocalyptic scene" as children had to wade through knee-high bloody water just to move through the city on Eid.

TWITTER Nearly 100,000 livestock were sacrificed in Dhaka this year

AP The streets of Dhaka, Bangladesh have turned into 'rivers of blood'

Nearly 100,000 animals are drained of blood in the gruesome sacrifice ritual every year in Dhaka for the Muslim Eid festival. On Wednesday alone, more than 5,000 animals had their throats slit in public streets. This grisly slaughter coincided with heavy monsoon rain yesterday to unleash a 'flood of blood' through the streets of the Bangladeshi capital.

Atish Saha, a Dhaka-based resident, said: "I felt I was walking through a post-apocalyptic neighbourhood. "To be honest, I was scared. It was an image of mass violence that shouldn’t ever be experienced." He added that it made him "speechless" to see infants trudging through the chilling rivers of blood with smiles on their faces.

AP The skins of the cattle sacrificed in Dhaka

TWITTER Residents wading through ankle-high bloody water

Devout Muslims drag goats and cows to public streets before slaughtering them for Allah during the Eid al-Adha holiday, one of the biggest Islamic celebrations of the year. The meat is then shared between family, friends and the poor. The holiday is intended to honour Abraham for being willing to sacrifice his son on God's command.

TWITTER The blood comes from animals sacrificed for the festival

IG Goats and cows are bought from markets by Muslim families and slaughtered

To be honest, I was scared. It was an image of mass violence that shouldn’t ever be experienced Atish Saha

Public officials have blamed poor drainage systems in the city for the mess as photos saw residents struggle through the bloody waters. A waste management official from Dhaka said they were working to clear the red floodwaters, a macabre fallout of the celebration. Authorities also blamed the haunting scene on residents who used areas not designated by city officials for religious sacrifice. Although photos of the horrific streets in Dhaka went viral – with many online criticising the bloody ritual – residents in the city itself were used to the sight of the annual sacrifice.

TWITTER Several thousand animals were sacrificed in Dhaka city

TWITTER A car drives past a road turned red after blood from sacrificial animals