Police rescue lion cub, monkey from illegal animal traders
Authorities believe cub was smuggled into Israel, say anyone who came near the animals must be tested for diseases; another cub and monkeys recovered in ops earlier in the week
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Police said Saturday they rescued a lion cub near Kafr Qasim and a monkey in Lod, amid a string of operations against the illegal animal trade.
Police found the lion cub wandering in an open area of Kafr Qasim. According to Hebrew-language reports, authorities believe the cub was illegally smuggled into Israel but later abandoned.
In a statement, police said the cub would later be transferred to an animal shelter in the Kiryat Motzkin Zoo.
In Lod, investigators and Border Police officers searched a home and found an adult monkey inside a carrier too small for its size, tied up with chains and with a tight strap around its stomach.
The monkey was tested for tuberculosis, rabies, and other diseases, the police statement said, adding that the Israel Nature and Parks Authority warned such smuggled animals may carry diseases even if they look healthy.
The Nature and Parks Authority said anyone who came near the wild animals must be tested amid fears they may have contracted diseases such as tuberculosis and rabies that endanger human lives.
Earlier in the week, authorities rescued a lion cub and two monkeys from a Bedouin area of the south.
Additionally, a monkey was found in an abandoned shack in Tel Sheva and another primate discovered near the Beersheba prison, the Kan public broadcaster reported.
The Times of Israel Community.