Five lions in the Al-Qureshi Park in Khartoum, Sudan are in a shocking condition. Images show that these magnificent animals are skin and bone, mangey and knocking on death’s door. The state of these animals has sparked an international campaign to save them.
According to AFP, the animals are living in small cages and have been subjected to food and medical shortages for weeks. Their health has rapidly declined, with their body weight sitting at two-thirds less than what it should be.
A manager of the zoo, Essamelddine Hajjar, spoke to AFP and said that staff have been using their own money to try feed the lions.
Sadly, one of the lionesses succumbed to the circumstances and died on 20 January. The state of the lions prompted Osman Salih to start the online campaign titled #Sudananimalrescue.
The park is co-managed by Khartoum municipality which receives funding from private donors. Sudan is currently facing an economic crisis, inflated food prices and a shortage of foreign currency.
These lions need to be taken out of Sudan immediately. Take them to a proper wildlife park or a European zoo, where they get at least food while being imprisoned. Humanity is so disgusting sometimes. #sudananimalrescue #sudan pic.twitter.com/QN8sf0J5mo
— UsamaIbnMunqid (@munqid) January 21, 2020
#SudanAnimalRescue
Heartbreaking images from Al-Qureshi Park in the country’s capital city of Khartoum show 5 lions with skin hanging from their bones in a clear sign of the zoo’s inability to feed the creatures amid a dire shortage of food and medicine. pic.twitter.com/BMxYfY5YZm— EA Wild Life Society (@eawildlife) January 21, 2020
#SudanAnimalRescue
Thanks to sustained pressure being put on Sudanese officials by various #AnimalProtection organisations and the public, the lions at Al-Qurashi Park are finally receiving much needed care and attention crucial for their evacuation. pic.twitter.com/54MHEGHAof— EA Wild Life Society (@eawildlife) January 23, 2020
Online calls under #SudanAnimalRescue are growing to help save ‘malnourished and sick’ African lions held at a park in Sudan’s capital, with some demanding the creatures be shifted to a better habitat.
Maybe move them to Nairobi Aga Khan on #ImpeachmentDay pic.twitter.com/7SpsMhoVbW— Moi avenue CCTV (@CctvMoi) January 22, 2020
Also read: Guatemalan circus cats arrive safely in SA
Image: Twitter
