Killing stray cats

Fatwa no. 12493 Praise be to Allah and peace and blessings be upon Prophet Muhammad, after whom there is no prophet. To proceed,The Permanent Committee for Scholarly Research and Ifta' has looked into the question submitted to His Honor, General President, from the Secretary in charge of Jeddah. It is referred to the Committee from the General Secretariat of the Council of Senior Scholars no. 5597 on Sha`ban 11, 1409 A.H. The question reads as follows:We would like to call to your attention the phenomenon of the spread of stray cats in Jeddah. As you know, scientific experiments have proven that this type of stray cats endangers public health and human ecology due to the diseases they transfer to humans from their strewing garbage around out of containers on the streets. This makes the job of garbage collectors difficult. Therefore, we present the matter to Your Honor to guide us regarding whether we can get rid of stray cats to avoid their harm in accordance with Shari`ah principles, and to contain their dangers. (Part No. 26; Page No. 198) May Allah protect you. As-salamu `alaykum warahmatullah wabarakatuh (May Allah's Peace, Mercy, and Blessings be upon you!)

Having examined the question, the Committee rules as follows: There is no problem in killing them if their harm is proven to be great and cannot be avoided except by killing them.May Allah grant us success. May peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and Companions.