Animal rights groups decry clandestine sedation and removal of ‘the stolen 18’ as officials say drought conditions jeopardized the pachyderms wellbeingThree American zoos have pulled off an audacious clandestine operation to wing a group of elephants out of Swaziland despite a legal challenge to block the transfer,enraging conservationists who claim that removing elephants from the wild for display in zoos is cruel and outdated.
The 18 elephants – three males and 15 females ranging in age from six to 25 – were sedated, loaded onto crates and placed on a large cargo plane that arrived in Swaziland at around 7.30am local time on Tuesday. Pictures taken at the scene present several large crates, or ostensibly for elephants,being picked up by a crane and placed onto trucks.
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Source: theguardian.com