SPNL nature peacebuilders and UNIFIL peacekeepers united to take part in the international #CallToEarth Day. SPNL and UNIFIL worked hand in hand to solidify the need to go back to the roots and connect with nature and your fellow human. On the occasion of #CallToEarth Day, SPNL and UNIFIL have released the newly rescued Egyptian Vulture, named Louis, back into the wild, thus becoming a message of peace and hope for the upcoming years.
The anti-poaching unit (APU) of the Society for the Protection of Nature in Lebanon (SPNL) and the Middle East Sustainable Hunting Center (MESHC) headed to Naqoura on Monday to release one of three Egyptian vultures that had been rescued from a zoo in south Lebanon two months ago, based on a complaint submitted to the APU by the Lebanese Wildlife Society and in collaboration with the prosecutor for environmental affairs, Judge Rahif Ramadan, as well as the security forces and military intelligence.
After a medical report had been prepared and signed by veterinarian Dr. Gaby Helene, the vulture, named Louis, was released in Naqoura in collaboration with the UNIFIL and military intelligence. The release ceremony was attended by SPNL director general Mr. Asaad Serhal, the APU team, Naqoura mayor Mr. Abbas Awada, Mr. Muhammad Abu Jahjah, representative of the Civil Affairs Office in UNIFIL, and Mr. Philip Scarr, UNIFIL’s Chief Transport Officer, lieutenant colonel Binod of UNIFIL’s Nepalese batallion, as well as Mr. Adonis Khatib, head of the MESHC and sustainable hunting coordinator at SPNL, and members of military intelligence.
It is important to note that the MESHC and SPNL, the Lebanon partner of Birdlife International, are implementing a series of projects for the protection of migratory birds, including the Migratory Soaring Birds (MSB) project funded by the Global Environment Fund, the EU funded “Egyptian Vulture New Life” project, and also the Safe Flyways Project funded by the Swiss MAVA foundation.
