posted on September 20, 2003 09:44:56 PM
US soldier kills rare tiger at Iraq zoo after drunken partyAgence France-Presse
Baghdad, September 20
An American soldier shot and killed a rare Bengal tiger in Baghdad zoo during an apparently drunken party, the head of the zoo said on Saturday.
"The soldiers arrived in the evening with food and beer, accompanied by a group of Iraqi police officers," Adel Salman Musa said of the incident on Thursday night.
"One of the soldiers, who the Iraqi police said had drunk a lot, went into the cage against the advice of his colleagues and tried to feed the animal, who severely hurt his arm," he explained to AFP.
The tiger tore off one of the soldier's fingers and mauled his arm. One of the other soldiers immediately fired at the animal and killed it, he said.
"The soldiers don't have the right to behave like that.
That was the most precious and valuable animal in the whole zoo. It was 14 years old and had been born here," Salman Musa said.
The Bengal tiger is an endangered species which is protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and the World Conservation Union (IUCN). There are only 3,000-4,500 of these beautiful creatures left in the wild.
Salman Musa said US soldiers often held parties in the zoo in the evenings. "We have no way of stopping them," he said.
US Sergeant Mark Ingham confirmed to AFP that an American soldier had killed the tiger on Thursday and said the incident was being investigated.
posted on September 20, 2003 10:38:02 PM
What a moron...the military should hang this clown out to dry.
___________________________________
In this world of sin and sorrow, there is always something to be thankful for; as for me, I rejoice that I am not a Republican. -- H.L. Mencken
posted on September 22, 2003 09:04:44 AM
When I was in the service, sunburning was considered "damaging government property." Does this still exist in today's military?
