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Saudis told to spare wolvesJEDDAH, Mar 12, 2010 (Arab News - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- A number of Saudi citizens, especially in the northern city of Hail, have called for an immediate halt to the random killing of wolves in the country in order to protect this animal from extinction. "The deliberate killing of wolves has caused a remarkable drop in the number of these animals and is threatening them with imminent extinction in one of its important habitats," said Muhammad Al-Shammari, a Saudi concerned about wildlife. He strongly condemned the "erroneous practice" of unjustifiable killing of animals, deer and other species of wild animals that is resulting in the their numbers rapidly decreasing in the Kingdom. "Ironically this is being done under the very eyes of the concerned government organizations that are not moving to do anything about it. Paradoxically, some hunters appear on a number of Internet sites carrying the carcasses of the animals they have killed. They pose proudly for the picture," he said. Al-Shammari said in the past people used to kill the wolves in order to protect their sheep, but now killing the wolves has become a hobby and a source of pride for many young men. "The pride young Saudi hunters take in killing wolves and taking pictures with the dead bodies has promoted others to do the same," he said. Faris Al-Shamli, another wildlife activist, recalled an incident where a group of young Saudis chased a wolf in north Hail until they killed it and hanged its carcass at a gas station. "A man from outside the region bought the carcass for SR6,000," he added. Fahhad Al-Otaibi, on the other hand, called for killing wolves because they kill sheep and goats and also attack humans. "We must wipe out all wolves from our area to protect our domestic animals," he said. Otaibi said that during old times people in the area believed that old wolves kill jinn and demons. "This legend may be true or false but the sure thing is that wolves constitute a threat to our domestic herds and must be killed," he said. A hunter of wolves, who did not want to be named, said since his childhood he had been looking at wolves as wild animals threatening the lives of man and other domestic animals. "I recently heard that a wolf attacked a group of young men in rest houses in Tabuk and Shakaka. This is enough proof that wolves are dangerous animals that have to be killed," he said. To see more of the Arab News or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.arabnews.com. Copyright (c) 2010, Arab News, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email [email protected], call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. |