Escaped lion shot dead in Turkey after attacking worker
The lion, reportedly named Zeus, escaped his enclosure at the Land of Lions animal theme park in Manavgat, some 60 kilometres west of Antalya in the early hours of the morning, the local governor said in a statement.
According to BirGun newspaper, the lion then attacked an agricultural worker called Suleiman Kir who was asleep in a pistachio field with his wife.
Kir then tussled with the lion before it ran off. He was injured but not badly and was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment.
"We were covered with blankets to protect ourselves from mosquitoes and when the prayer call sounded, I tried to stand up but I couldn't," he told the newspaper.
"Suddenly I felt something touch my left foot and when I eventually managed to get up, I saw it was something huge -- I thought it was a dog."
In a video posted online, he described the moments wrestling with the lion.
"We called for help but there was no-one around. As the lion was biting my calf and my neck, I grabbed him around the neck and began to squeeze, and he backed off. At that moment, the security forces came," he said.
"If I had not been strong, I wouldn't be here right now."
Antalya's governor said in a statement that the lion had been tracked down and shot dead.
"It was not possible to catch the escaped lion alive because it posed a danger to people and the environment so it was shot," he said, indicating that an investigation had been opened into the incident.
BirGun newspaper said there were around 30 big cats at the Land of Lions.
Agence France-Presse
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Gulf Today
2 days ago
- Gulf Today
Pakistan police arrest 149, including 71 foreigners, in scam centre raid
Pakistan police arrested 149 people -- including 71 foreigners, mostly Chinese -- in a raid on a scam call centre, the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency said on Thursday. "During the raid, a large call centre was uncovered, which was involved in Ponzi schemes and investment fraud," the agency said in a statement. "Through this fraudulent network, the public was being deceived and vast sums of money were being illegally collected." The agency said they were acting on a tip-off about the network, operating in the city of Faisalabad, a manufacturing centre in the east of the country. It said the raid was at the residence of Tasheen Awan, the son of the former chairman of the Water and Power Development Authority, a government agency. All those arrested were in custody, including 78 Pakistanis and 48 Chinese, as well as citizens from Nigeria, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Zimbabwe and Myanmar. Some 18 of the 149 were women, it added. Agence France-Presse
The National
5 days ago
- The National
Escaped lion shot dead in Turkey after attacking worker
A lion which escaped from a theme park near the Turkish resort of Antalya was shot dead on Sunday after attacking a man, the local governor and media reports said. The lion, reportedly named Zeus, escaped his enclosure at the Land of Lions animal theme park in Manavgat, about 60km west of Antalya in the early hours, the governor said. According to BirGun newspaper, the lion then attacked Suleiman Kir, an agricultural worker, who was asleep in a pistachio field with his wife. Mr Kir then tussled with the lion before it ran off. He was injured and taken to a nearby hospital for treatment. "We were covered with blankets to protect ourselves from mosquitoes and when the prayer call sounded, I tried to stand up but I couldn't," he said. "Suddenly I felt something touch my left foot and when I eventually managed to get up, I saw it was something huge – I thought it was a dog." In a video posted online, he described the moments wrestling with the lion. "We called for help but there was no one around. As the lion was biting my calf and my neck, I grabbed him around the neck and began to squeeze and he backed off. At that moment, the security forces came," he said. "If I had not been strong, I wouldn't be here right now." Antalya's governor said the lion had been tracked down and shot dead. "It was not possible to catch the escaped lion alive because it posed a danger to people and the environment so it was shot," he said, indicating that an investigation had been opened into the incident. BirGun said there were about 30 big cats at the Land of Lions.
Gulf Today
5 days ago
- Gulf Today
Escaped lion shot dead in Turkey after attacking worker
A lion which escaped from a theme park near the Turkish resort of Antalya was shot dead on Sunday after attacking a man, the local governor and media reports said. The lion, reportedly named Zeus, escaped his enclosure at the Land of Lions animal theme park in Manavgat, some 60 kilometres west of Antalya in the early hours of the morning, the local governor said in a statement. According to BirGun newspaper, the lion then attacked an agricultural worker called Suleiman Kir who was asleep in a pistachio field with his wife. Kir then tussled with the lion before it ran off. He was injured but not badly and was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment. "We were covered with blankets to protect ourselves from mosquitoes and when the prayer call sounded, I tried to stand up but I couldn't," he told the newspaper. "Suddenly I felt something touch my left foot and when I eventually managed to get up, I saw it was something huge -- I thought it was a dog." In a video posted online, he described the moments wrestling with the lion. "We called for help but there was no-one around. As the lion was biting my calf and my neck, I grabbed him around the neck and began to squeeze, and he backed off. At that moment, the security forces came," he said. "If I had not been strong, I wouldn't be here right now." Antalya's governor said in a statement that the lion had been tracked down and shot dead. "It was not possible to catch the escaped lion alive because it posed a danger to people and the environment so it was shot," he said, indicating that an investigation had been opened into the incident. BirGun newspaper said there were around 30 big cats at the Land of Lions. Agence France-Presse
