2 lions from Mideast war zones head to South African refuge

JOHANNESBURG –  Two lions rescued from neglected zoos in war zones in Iraq and Syria have been transported to South Africa to recover from physical and psychological trauma at a big cat sanctuary.

Fiona Miles with international animal welfare group Four Paws says the male lions have arrived in Johannesburg on a Qatar Airways flight after leaving an animal refuge in Jordan on Sunday.

The lions arrived emaciated, dehydrated and psychologically scarred in Jordan last year.

Now 4-year-old Simba and 2-year-old Saeed are headed to the Lionsrock facility near the town of Bethlehem.

Some of the 80 lions at the facility came from a German circus and zoos in France, Romania and Congo. Others are from South African captive-bred lion operations that often earmark the predators for “trophy” killings by customers.