The war between Israel and Palestine has been going on for decades. Since “all means are permitted” in war, neither side has shied away from using weapons that have had the effect of destroying plants and animals. The human losses on both sides took on truly enormous proportions, and unfortunately the animals also paid the price.
Today’s story will not have a happy ending. Sadly, you will see images of a gruesome scene of animals who lost their lives due to the unfortunate circumstances of war, and a man named Mohammed Awaida did not allow them to be forgotten and their sacrifice to be in vain. He founded the Khan Younis Zoo in the Gaza Strip in 2007.
During the worst time of the war, the zoo staff could not stay with the animals. They had to flee and leave them all behind. Many animals died of hunger, of fear, without health care, neglected, without the possibility to survive.
After the end of the fierce battle between the two armies, Mohammed decided to return to the zoo, hoping that he could still help the animals. But luck was not on his side.
In the summer of 2014, the clashes between Israel and Hamas escalated again. Muhammad was confronted with the same terrible situation again and again. Again, dozens of animals lost their lives. In his desperation and helplessness, he came up with the idea of setting up a zoo with dead animals whose bodies would be embalmed and serve as a reminder that the war would never be repeated. They would serve as a reminder that due to the lack of tactics and good diplomacy, not only people but also animals lost their lives. All the evil and tragedy of war will end up in the fences of this zoo.
At this point, the dead animals almost outnumber the living ones.
The lives of these animals were tragic, and when they were alive, they were not given the care or protection they needed because of the emergency situation, because there was no supervision or government agency in this park.
There were no guards, no doctors, and any medical treatment needed was done through telephone consultations with veterinarians in Egypt.
The zoo is virtually unsupervised, even when there are no fights.
It is terribly painful and sad that these animals died in one of the most painful ways. Starvation and dehydration are among the most painful ways to die.
There are a total of 5 zoos in Gaza and this story raises the question of how the animals are treated in these facilities.
With all that is going on between these two groups, it is hard to believe that the living conditions of the other animals could be much better. Something should definitely be done to protect these animals.
Let’s share this article with friends so that maybe someone can come up with an idea to help these animals!