BenTzur and Ori have completed their journey home to sanctuary!

Stolen from their mother as babies and illegally trafficked into Israel, Ori was found in a basement and BenTzur tied to a tree in a yard. Thankfully, they were seized by Israel’s Nature & Parks Authority (NPA) cracking down on the illegal wildlife trade.

Watch their journey home to the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary here. The young lions were loaded into travel crates on Sunday August 2 and after a stopover in Frankfurt arrived in South Africa on Tuesday August 4.

Support the cost of the rescue and the boys’ lifetime care at the Sanctuary: Donate US $, CA $ | Donate UK £, Euros, Rand 

Thursday July 30 – at the zoo where BenTzur and Ori were being looked after

Sunday August 2 – BenTzur and Ori loaded into their travel crates and onto the truck for their journey to the airport

Sunday, August 2: the lions at Tel Aviv airport and being taken into the cargo section. For security reasons it was not possible to go live. The lions were checked on the truck and were calm. Jan sprayed the crates with some extra Feliway calming pheromone. BenTzur and Ori were checked them again in the cargo area, given a little snack and their water topped up. Both lions were wary but not agitated, and taking it in their stride! They were in a quiet, temperature-controlled cargo area – so cool and out of the heat.

Our thanks to our shippers Bivas Brothers, Lufthansa Cargo (who we flew with and responded to all our access and care requests), Swissport (whose cargo and handling were used), Israel’s Nature and Parks Authority (who rescued the lions and helped things go smoothly), and the zoo team who cared for the lions until a forever home could be found.

Sunday August 2 – BenTzur and Ori boarded the plane, with Jan and Tim doing final checks before departure.

Sunday August 2 – the lions left Cairo for a 2+ hour stop in Egypt. A change of crew and cargo – the lions stayed put.  Jan and Tim gave the lions some snacks, they were hungry and eagerly took the food from the feeding tongs. Next stop Frankfurt where the team had a 10 hour wait before flying overnight to Johannesburg. The gruelling route shows just how hard it has been to get a flight out of Israel due to the war.  

Monday August 3 – BenTzur and Ori arrived in Frankfurt just after 7am looking great. They had eagerly eaten a snack during a 2 hour stop in Cairo, Egypt and when they touched down in Germany, were unloaded and the ADI team went with them to the Lufthansa Animal Transit Centre where we were able to open the shutter and get a proper look at them. We topped up their water and gave them a light breakfast which BenTzur devoured. Ori was more cautious but calm. We were unable to go live due to airport security restrictions

The lions have been stranded in Israel for months due to the war. This was our first opportunity to get them out and we seized it. But, it has meant an expensive and complex route to get them to their new life.

Monday August 3 – Final checks, fresh water and snacks for BenTzur and Ori ahead of their flight to South Africa and a new life at the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary. BenTzur was very relaxed and played with the pipe as we filled his water, while Ori is more reserved. It has been a long journey for these young lions but the reward is a lifetime where they belong in the land of their ancestors. Nearly home!

Tuesday 4 August – BenTzur and Ori arrive in South Africa at Johannesburg airport.

Tuesday 4 August – BenTzur and Ori enter South Africa, and are loaded onto ADI Wildlife Sanctuary vehicles for their journey home.

Tuesday 4 August – BenTzur and Ori arrive at the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary after a grueling journey from Israel, via Cairo and Frankfurt, to Johannesburg and on to their forever home at the Sanctuary. The boys are unloaded and released into their night house – BenTzur followed by Ori – and are then reunited. It is winter and very cold overnight compared to the summer heat in Israel. They are kept in their heated house and are released outside in the morning.

Support the cost of the rescue and help care for them at the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary: Donate US $, CA $ | Donate UK £, Euros, Rand