KARACHI: The Sindh wildlife department on Thursday ordered to confiscate four lions and two tigers, kept as pets by a resident of Karachi and seen roaming freely in a compound, a senior official said on Wednesday.
Keeping wild cats as pets is not uncommon in Pakistan, where wealthy businessmen have been known to operate private zoos and sometimes parade the animals for the public.
Media reported panic and alarm among citizens of the port city’s Gulshan-e-Hadeed area on Tuesday night after they saw the animals uncaged and roaming freely within a compound.
“I have ordered to confiscate the animals and shift them to Karachi Zoo for 45 days. The owner of the animals may auction them during this period. If he doesn’t do it, however, they will become the property of the zoo,” Javed Ahmed Mahar, conservator of the Sindh Wildlife Department, told Arab News after passing the order in the capacity of a magistrate.
The order noted that the “act of possessing ‘Big Cats’ without the ‘Certificate of Lawful Possession’ was bad in the eyes of Law” and keeping dangerous animals in a residential area “could put lives of people at great risk.”
“As requested by the owner during the proceedings and keeping in view the financial aspect of this case and to save the owner from heavy financial losses, he has been provided with a chance during this period [of 45 days] to publish an advertisement in newspapers for the sale of lions through open auction,” the order read, adding that the owner would pay the feeding expenses to the Karachi Zoo, though the animal sanctuary would not take any rental or other charges.
Speaking to Arab News on Thursday, Mahar said the owner of the animals, Zuhaib Ali, had presented an expired license before the department this morning, adding that the license only gave permission to maintain a mini-zoo with birds and herbivores, not dangerous animals like lions and tigers. The license also did not apply to Ali’s area of residence, the conservator added.
Ali told Arab News one lion had come out of its cage when a janitor went in to clean it but was immediately put back in.
“These are my pet animals which I have adopted since these were two-months old, they cannot harm anyone,” Ali said, adding that he believed he had all necessary documentation allowing him to keep the animals in any area with thirty-feet high boundary walls.
“These are like my children,” Ali said. “If these are freed in the wild, they will die.”
In 2017, police in Pakistan arrested a man who took his pet lion for a night-time drive through the streets of the bustling city of Karachi after video of the incident went viral on social media.
In 2015, a pet lioness gave birth to five cubs in the central city of Multan, media said at the time.
Wildlife department confiscates pet lions, tigers from Karachi resident
https://arab.news/j2c7w
Wildlife department confiscates pet lions, tigers from Karachi resident
- Media reported panic among Gulshan-e-Hadeed residents on Tuesday after they saw the animals roaming freely within a compound
- Owner Zuhaib Ali says he has raised the imported pets since they were two months old, “they cannot harm anyone”
UN hails Pakistan’s peacekeepers serving in six missions worldwide
- Pakistan is the fifth-largest troop contributor, with 171 peacekeepers killed in UN service
- Over 2,600 Pakistani military and police personnel are deployed across Africa and beyond
ISLAMABAD: The United Nations on Friday praised Pakistan’s contribution to global peacekeeping, saying Pakistani military and police personnel were currently serving in six UN missions around the world.
According to information shared by the world body alongside its social media post, Pakistan is the fifth-largest contributor to UN peacekeeping operations, with 2,662 personnel — including 147 women — deployed across missions in Abyei, the Central African Republic, Cyprus, the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Sudan and Western Sahara.
“In six UN peacekeeping missions around the world, over 2,600 military and police officers from Pakistan are serving for peace, leaving their families to protect those most at risk,” the UN said.
“We thank these brave women and men for their service and sacrifice,” it added.
Pakistan joined UN peacekeeping in 1960 when it deployed a contingent to the UN Operation in the Congo and has since played a prominent role in peace operations, undertaking tasks ranging from civilian protection and medical outreach to disaster response and infrastructure rebuilding, according to the UN.
A total of 171 Pakistani peacekeepers have lost their lives while serving under the UN flag, the organization said.
Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Asim Iftikhar Ahmad echoed the message, saying Pakistani peacekeepers had made the nation proud through their service.
“Pakistan has worked as part of UN Peacekeeping to serve the cause of international peace,” he said in a post on X. “Our brave men and women in blue helmets have made the nation proud through their dedicated service in support of communities affected by conflicts and wars.”
