Saudi royals seem to be more hazardous to the world bird-life than wind turbines and skyscrapers! A Saudi prince poached thousands of protected birds during a 21-day hunting safari in Pakistan, so claims a new report.
We interviewed Karl Amman about illegal wildlife trafficking at the Westgate Mall in Nairobi about two years ago. Since then, increasingly violent poaching incidents have been linked to terrorist groups such as al-Shabaab, which recently claimed responsibility for an armed attack on the Israeli-built shopping center in Kenya.
Last year in Cyprus a total of 2.8 million migrating birds were trapped and killed to make a pickled dish called ambelopoulia. It’s a serious crime and offenders face fines of up to €17,000 and three years in jail if caught, but Agriculture Minister Sophocles Aletaris told an EU delegation concerned about environmental issues that […]
When marine politics get nasty: Ahmet Aslan recovers in a hospital after being shot in the eye by a gang of illegal fishermen. Fishing is a time-honored Istanbul tradition. But to catch and sell fish, one must have a license nowadays. That doesn’t stop some from illegally trawling for fish in the Bosphorus, or the […]
Some people make collages of family pictures, but a group of friends in Kuwait compiled these images after killing a wolf with a shotgun. In response to yesterday’s post about the only two countries in the Middle East that offer wolves any kind of legal protection, a Kuwaiti reader forwarded a link to a story […]
Every year trappers in Cyprus kill millions of migrating songbirds that are boiled or pickled – a national delicacy called ambelopoulia. Wildlife conservationists want authorities there to do more to prevent this “ecological disaster.” One songbird is illegally trapped or killed every four seconds to provide residents of Cyprus with ingredients for a dish called […]
Reef sharks in the Gulf are especially vulnerable without sanctuaries to ensure their protection. Red Sea sharks are threatened by Yemenese poachers who sell their fins to Asia for a fit price. But it turns out that Persian Gulf shark species are also vulnerable. So much so that conservationists have advised regional environmental groups and […]
No more Mr. Nice Guy! Interpol intends to step up regulation of illegal wildlife trade and other environmental crimes. What eventually became The International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) began with fits and starts in the early 20th century. Then the Nazis and disturbing fellows like Reinhard Heydrick, Chief Executor of the “Final Solution to the […]