The animals in a zoo in Gaza were in desperate need of rescue. They were dying at alarming rate due to the unsanitary conditions when the Austrian association Four Paws stepped in at this zoo in Khan Younis, to save the last imprisoned residents of this true hellhole.
(Warning: graphic content below)
Over the past few months the animals faced a never-ending ordeal, as the zoo is situated in a war zone. Without enough water and food, they started to fall victim to the extremely volatile living conditions one after the other.
Source : @FourPawsInternational
The dead animals were not even removed from the premises and their corpses were scattered everywhere, horror still visible in their half-open eyes. This zoo deserves its reputation as "the worst zoo in the world".
Source : @FourPawsInternational
There had been a hundred animals to begin with and only 15 were left at the time of the rescue, which was the result of months of negotiations between the local authorities and the associations.
Source : @FourPawsInternational
A specially deployed team from Four Paws had also saved some monkeys, porcupines, birds and a tiger on August 23.
The animals were transferred to New Hope Center, a sanctuary situated in Jordan, funded by the Hussein Royal Family and run by Princess Alia.
Source : @FourPawsInternational
Laziz, the tiger, was the only one who ended up in South Africa, where he'll find peace at the Lionsrock sanctuary, according to French organisation 30 Millions d'Amis, who helped Four Paws pull off this rescue.
Source : @FourPawsInternational
Four Paws International fought since last year for the removal of the animals and for this sad excuse of a zoo to be shut down.
Their success is a huge victory for animal rights in general and specifically for the association, who had already aided neglected animals in two cases in 2015.
The veterinarian in charge of the operation, Amir Khalil, explains:
The shutting down of the zoo signifies a new start for Laziz, the tiger, and the other animals who have previously had their lives wasted by the incredibly sad living conditions. They suffered from a cruel lack of food and care.
Source : @FourPawsInternational
In a statement on their Facebook page, the Four Paws team said that Laziz did not fight them when being put into his transport cage, and he seemed obviously happy to finally leave this nightmare.
On August 25 Four Paws shared moving photos of the surviving animals finally in their new home, exploring the environment excitedly:
Source : @FourPawsInternational
Source : @FourPawsInternational
Source : @FourPawsInternational
To read more about the great work of Four Paws and to support their efforts, click here.
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