* This article has been updated.
Johannesburg – The FOUR PAWS mission to rescue the few surviving animals at the Motazah Al-Morour zoo in crisis-stricken Mosul, Iraq, has been threatened with failure after the rescue team was stopped at one of the check points and prevented from exiting.
After entering the city, the FOUR PAWS team managed to anaesthetise bear Lula and lion Simba and load them into the prepared crates. However the mission came to an abrupt stop, with the team being told they are unable to exit Mosul with the two rescued animals.
FOUR PAWS veterinarian and head of the mission Dr Amir Khalil explains: “Despite the expressed support of the military, we were detained at the border. In fact, only 200 meters separated Lula and Simba from safety.”
The Iraqi military has subsequently taken the animals back to the zoo while the FOUR PAWS team has had to leave Mosul. Dr Khalil will now start negotiations with representatives of the government with the hope of ensuring the safe passage of the animals out of Mosul can still be arranged. If negotiations fail, Lulu and Simba will have to spend the rest of their lives in their cages in Mosul zoo.
"The zoo has been in a horrible state for months with animals suffering and even starving to death. Although alive, Lula and Simba look miserable and are suffering from many diseases caused by malnutrition and a lack of veterinary care. Both the bear and the lion have very bad teeth. In addition, the bear is suffering from pneumonia and the lion has a joint condition. Their cages were filled with debris when the FOUR PAWS team first found them," the organisation said in a statement.
Dr Khalil said: “Lula and Simba don’t have any chance of survival unless we can take them out of the zoo and bring them to safety.”
FOUR PAWS has set up a donation page, where animal lovers from all over the world can help to save the animals from a cruel fate with their donation:
South Africa: http://bit.ly/help-for-mosul-ZA
https://www.givengain.com/cc/mosulzoo/