Source:
BBCWild animals reportedly caught in Zimbabwe and intended as a gift to North Korea may not survive in the Asian country, conservationists say. North Korea has long been a close ally of Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe.
"We're very concerned," Johny Rodrigues, chairman of the Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force, told the BBC. He said the habitat may not be suitable for baby elephants, rhinos and other animals which he believed would be secretly flown in pairs to North Korea. Mr Rodrigues told the BBC he believed that wild animals - such as baby elephants, giraffes, rhinos and zebras - were being secretly caught in pairs in the past two months in the Hwange National Park, western Zimbabwe.
He said his organisation was alerted by one of the wardens in the park, who was concerned about the operation. Mr Rodrigues also said witnesses had seen state parks vehicles towing cages in the area and the runway of the local airport being extended. It is believed the animals are being kept in quarantine before being sent to North Korea.
"It's such a secretive thing," Mr Rodrigues said. He said he believed that the airlift to the Communist state would go ahead after "a presidential decree", which would guarantee that "no-one can touch" the secret cargo.
Read more:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8682336.stm
Kim and Mugabe - now there's a pair! As much hunger as there is in North Korea, those animals may not survive long enough to see if the habitat is suitable or not.