A lioness, Aysa, who was rescued from a zoo in war-torn eastern Ukraine, might find a new home in the U.K. along with her cubs, BBC reports.
Aysa, who was pregnant when abandoned at a zoo in Donetsk Oblast, later gave birth to cubs named Teddi, Emi, and Santa at another facility in Ukraine.
In mid-June, Aysa and her three cubs along with another lion crossed the Ukraine-Poland border after traveling for close to 20 hours. The evacuation of the big cats was made possible through a collaboration between the International Fund for Animal Welfare, Wild Animal Rescue, UAnimals and Poznań Zoo.
Now the U.K.-based Yorkshire Wildlife Park is actively pursuing the necessary permissions to relocate the lions to the U.K., aiming for this move to happen before Christmas. Currently, all four lions are temporarily residing at Poznan Zoo in Poland.
A spokesman for the wildlife park near Doncaster, South Yorkshire, said it wanted to give the lions “a better life and a brighter future.”
Read also: Military intelligence: 400,000 Russian soldiers occupy Ukrainian lands
We’ve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
David Turner is a globe-trotting journalist who brings a global perspective to our readers. With a commitment to shedding light on international events, he explores complex geopolitical issues, offering a nuanced view of the world’s most pressing challenges.
