Update [July 12 2017]: After a four-month long legal battle and with the help of the Lebanese government, a decision was taken to allow the tigers to be resettled in France and they were flown out as special cargo on a passenger plane and arrived at the Tonga Terre D’accueil sanctuary near Lyon on Tuesday night. Many thanks to Animals Lebanon & PM Hariri and everyone involved for saving these beautiful creatures!
Three endangered Siberian tiger cubs were found hungry, dehydrated and covered in urine and feces few weeks back at Beirut’s airport. The tigers were being smuggled into Syria but were caught in time and rescued by Animals Lebanon.
The story has been picked up by several foreign news outlets and the baby tigers are still being taken care of by Animals Lebanon until further decision from the judge. Animals Lebanon are following up on this matter by the day and trying to reach the zoo from which these cubs originated but in vain.
They are doing their best to make sure the cubs are not returned to the person who transported them and be sent to a sanctuary instead. It’s about time the government and concerned ministries step in to rescue these cubs and prevent further smuggling of endangered animals.
It’s also important for everyone to get involved and help out in anyway they can Animals Lebanon. They’ve been doing a tremendous job for years and they deserve all our support. I will try to visit the cubs during the weekend and will keep you posted with updates.