Sudan Vets Fight to Save Park's Starving Lions

Sudanese vet Hamad Abdallah is among the professionals trying to save the surviving lions in the park. AFP
Sudanese vet Hamad Abdallah is among the professionals trying to save the surviving lions in the park. AFP
TT
20

Sudan Vets Fight to Save Park's Starving Lions

Sudanese vet Hamad Abdallah is among the professionals trying to save the surviving lions in the park. AFP
Sudanese vet Hamad Abdallah is among the professionals trying to save the surviving lions in the park. AFP

Sudanese vets are fighting to save four surviving lions held at a park in Khartoum after a fifth lioness died on Monday of dehydration and lack of food.

The lioness died although it received intravenous fluids for several days following the launch of an online campaign for veterinary help.

The lions had lost as much as two-thirds of their body weight as a result of going without food for weeks after Sudan's chronic cash shortage hit donations.

"It's so upsetting. These lions have been suffering for so long," said Osman Salih, a software engineer who launched the online campaign to save the lions.

"We were so late in rescuing them and were unable to save the one that died." he said, AFP reported.

A second lioness was also sick but her condition has improved.

Salih said a group of international wildlife conservationists had contacted him offering their help to save the lions.

"They are specialists and are planning to come to Khartoum with their kits and resources," he told AFP.

Al-Qureshi Park is managed by Khartoum municipality but funded in part by private donors, which have dried up in the face of the economic crisis that triggered nationwide protests though much of last year.

The online campaign launched by Salih has grown over the past few days.



Pamplona Holds Opening Bull Run during San Fermín Festival

Participants run ahead of bulls during the first "encierro" (bull-run) of the San Fermin festival in Pamplona, northern Spain, on July 7, 2025. (Photo by JORGE GUERRERO / AFP)
Participants run ahead of bulls during the first "encierro" (bull-run) of the San Fermin festival in Pamplona, northern Spain, on July 7, 2025. (Photo by JORGE GUERRERO / AFP)
TT
20

Pamplona Holds Opening Bull Run during San Fermín Festival

Participants run ahead of bulls during the first "encierro" (bull-run) of the San Fermin festival in Pamplona, northern Spain, on July 7, 2025. (Photo by JORGE GUERRERO / AFP)
Participants run ahead of bulls during the first "encierro" (bull-run) of the San Fermin festival in Pamplona, northern Spain, on July 7, 2025. (Photo by JORGE GUERRERO / AFP)

Thousands of daredevils ran, skidded and tumbled out of the way of six charging bulls at the opening run of the San Fermín festival Monday.

It was the first of nine morning runs during the famous celebrations held in the northern Spanish city of Pamplona.

The bulls pounded along the twisting cobblestone streets after being led by six steers. Up to 4,000 runners take part in each bull run, which takes place over 846 meters (2,775 feet) and can last three to four minutes.

Most runners wear the traditional garb of white trousers and shirt with red sash and neckerchief. The expert Spanish runners try to sprint just in front of the bull's horns for a few death-defying seconds while egging the animal on with a rolled newspaper.

Thousands of spectators watch from balconies and wooden barricades along the course. Millions more follow the visceral spectacle on live television.

Unofficial records say at least 15 people have died in the bull runs over the past century. The deadliest day on record was July 13, 1980, when four runners were killed by two bulls. The last death was in 2009.

The rest of each day is for eating, drinking, dancing and cultural entertainment, including bull fights where the animals that run in the morning are slain in the bull ring by professional matadors each afternoon.

The festival was made internationally famous by Ernest Hemingway’s classic 1926 novel “The Sun Also Rises” about American bohemians wasting away in Europe.