Simba was released into his new adaptive enclosure at Lionsrock in Bethlehem, South Africa today. Photos by Daniel Born for Four Paws.
Monday marked the highly-anticipated arrival in South Africa of two lions that had been rescued from two deplorable zoos, located deep in the war zones of Mosul, Iraq and Aleppo, Syria, last year by Four Paws International.
According to the organization, the male lions, 4-year-old Simba and 2-year-old Saeed, were quite the cooperative passengers on the Qatar Airways flight that left their refuge in Jordan on Sunday and brought them to their new home in South Africa.
“There was no sedation needed for the two rescued lions, thanks to the great training of the animal caretakers and our partner sanctuary Al Ma’wa for Nature and Wildlife, the organization posted on its Facebook page.
The lions have since been successfully transported to LIONSROCK Big Cat Sanctuary & Lodge where they will live the rest of their lives in peace.
As per Four Paws, Simba was born in the Montazah Al-Morour Zoo in Eastern Mosul in Iraq, in 2014 during the war. He and a bear named Lula were rescued by Four Paws and subsequently taken to Al Ma’wa in Jordan in April 2017.
Saeed was born in the Magic World Zoo near Aleppo in Syria in 2016 and was one of 13 animals the organization rescued in July 2017. He was transferred to Al Ma’wa in August 2017.
