The lion cub entrusted to Animals Lebanon. She is in "poor condition" according to the association. (Credit: Animals Lebanon)
The case broke out a little over a month ago, revealed in August by Animals Lebanon: A lion cub held by a private individual from Baalbeck, A.H.H., was seen several times on social media and by witnesses in his company, in several regions of Lebanon. Following a long hunt, the lion cub was finally handed over to the association on Wednesday after several weeks of monitoring, following an investigation opened by the Baalbeck prosecutor in charge of environmental affairs, Iyad Bardan, and by the Animal Resources Directorate of the Ministry of Agriculture.
According to Maggie Chaarawi, vice-president of Animals Lebanon, "the cub is a four-month-old female and is in poor condition."
She confirmed to L'Orient-Le Jour that the animal was entrusted to the association at the Baalbeck police station. "The owner, who had been detained for several days, finally handed over the cub, which is now safe with Animals Lebanon," she continued.
Elias Ibrahim, director of animal resources at the Ministry of Agriculture, confirmed to L'Orient-Le Jour that the animal was entrusted to the association.
"We managed to convince the man's family to hand over the lion cub to the authorities, who in turn handed it over to the association, given that the association has a center specialized in the management of big cats and has the know-how in this area," he stated. According to him, it is up to the judge to decide the fate of A.H.H., describing the family's behavior as a "gesture of goodwill."
Asked about the possibility that other big cats were in the possession of this man, who had told the LBCI that he "made a career out of it," Ibrahim believes that "nothing has been proven, these statements may be erroneous since nothing was discovered at his home during previous searches."
Fourth lion cub in a few months
For Maggie Chaarawi, "the fight is not over, we still have to obtain the necessary documents and authorizations from the judge and the ministry in order to be able to send the little lioness to a sanctuary."
"We are also continuing the legal process against this person in order to push the authorities to penalize him and apply the law, in order to discourage anyone from getting involved in the illegal trafficking of wild animals," she added.
After a long hunt, the lion cub is safe. (Credit: Animals Lebanon)
The case was first raised in the media by Animals Lebanon on Aug. 23, while the association had been following this issue since Aug. 8, based on videos on social networks as well as accounts from eyewitnesses who saw the man and the animal on the highway and in densely populated cities such as Batroun.
The first searches at the suspect's home in Baalbeck, following the investigation opened against him, yielded nothing and the man had denied owning the lion cub.
Last weekend, A.H.H. posted new videos on TikTok showing the lion cub in the offices of a company, visibly stressed by the behavior of several people around him, as well as in his car. It was following these videos that the man was finally arrested.
Animals Lebanon has already helped save several lion cubs, including three in recent months: Issam and Kelly last fall, siblings who arrived smuggled in, and Pi, a young male found in Tripoli in the spring. All three were confiscated from abusive owners and sent to sanctuaries in South Africa.
Lebanon is often considered a hub for wildlife trafficking, due to its geographical location between Africa and Europe. The country ratified the International Convention on Trafficking in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) in 2013 and adopted a decree on big cats and a national law on animal protection and welfare in 2017.
This article originally appeared in French in L'Orient-Le Jour.