War Lions, who survived conflicts in Iraq and Syria, get new home in South Africa
Animals given life- long care in species appropriate home
FEBRUARY 27, 2018– Today, a new life begins for two lions. Lions that have experienced the horrors of war. Simba was rescued from a zoo in Mosul, Iraq, while Saeed came from an amusement part in Aleppo, Syria. However, the two lions have been transported to a sanctuary in South Africa, leaving their brutal past behind.
After more than half a year of rehabilitation in Jordan, Simba and Saeed were ready for their final journey. FOUR PAWS, the international animal welfare organization, relocated the former war lions to Johannesburg, South Africa yesterday, February 26. There, the two male lions will find peace and refuge in the 12-square-kilometer big cat sanctuary: LIONSROCK. The 33-hour transfer took place by passenger planes and trucks. This last transfer concludes delicate rescue missions to crisis areas in the Middle East as well as months of intensive care at the Jordanian wildlife rescue center Al Ma'wa for Nature and Wildlife.
The two lions have endured much suffering in their young lives. Believed to be about four-years-old, Simba was born in the Montazah Al-Morour Zoo in the eastern part of Mosul during the ongoing war in Iraq. The majority of the 40 animals at the zoo died of starvation or were killed by bomb attacks. The lucky few escaped from their damaged enclosures. When the FOUR PAWS rescue team visited in February 2017, they found only two animals alive in the zoo: bear Lula and lion Simba. After weeks of difficult negotiations in Iraq, the animal welfare organization successfully evacuated both wild animals in April 2017 and brought them to Jordan.
Saeed, however, was rescued in a group of 13 other animals. In July 2017, FOUR PAWS took over the remaining animals from the neglected zoo at the Magic World amusement park near Aleppo. International security companies and the Turkish Ministry of Forestry and Water Affairs supported the evacuation. After a two-week stay in Turkey, the Turkish government approved the departure of the 13 injured and traumatized animals to Jordan. Because of his young age, it is believed that two-year-old lion Saeed was born in captivity during the war in Syria.
Without their initial rehabilitation period, the improvement of the lions could have been greatly inhibited. The Jordanian wildlife rescue center Al Ma'wa for Nature and Wildlife, a joint project of FOUR PAWS and the Princess Alia Foundation, has become a species-appropriate home for most rescued zoo animals from crisis areas in the Middle East. Due to their good health and young age, FOUR PAWS decided to transfer Simba and Saeed. Approximately 100 rescued big cats, including lions and tigers, live at LIONSROCK. With 79 other lions, we are confident Simba and Saeed will find themselves a pride and a happy ending to their chaotic upbringing.
Read more about our rescues in Iraq and Syria here.
FOUR PAWS is the global animal welfare organization for animals under direct human influence, which reveals suffering, rescues animals in need, and protects them. Founded in 1988 in Vienna by Heli Dungler and friends, the organization advocates for a world where humans treat animals with respect, empathy, and understanding. FOUR PAWS’ sustainable campaigns and projects focus on companion animals including stray dogs and cats, farm animals and wild animals – such as bears, big cats, and orangutans – kept in inappropriate conditions as well as in disaster and conflict zones. With offices in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, France, Germany, Kosovo, the Netherlands, Switzerland, South Africa, Thailand, Ukraine, the UK, the USA and Vietnam, as well as sanctuaries for rescued animals in eleven countries, FOUR PAWS provides rapid help and long-term solutions. www.fourpawsusa.org