Animal crisis in Libya
Over 1,000 animals live in Libya’s Tripoli Zoo and have become victims of the war to oust Moammar Gadhafi. You may have seen some of the images in the media…
Three hippos hanging their heads sadly, looking down into a shallow pool of foul brown water, seemingly reluctant to bathe or drink…
A lone tiger walking restlessly, looking for shade…
Two scrawny lions pacing around the inside of their enclosure, suffering from a lack of food availability.
These war-torn animal victims of Tripoli Zoo are located at the center of the most intense fighting.
Zoo animals are often the first to be neglected when cities are hit by human-made or natural disasters. Just ten members of the 200-person zoo staff return periodically…struggling to keep up with so many animals to water and feed: hyenas, bears, monkeys, deer, emus and more. But it’s the big cats, the tiger and lion meat-eaters, that are especially difficult to provide for in this heat.