Armed Attack by Dozens of Hunters on Environmental Rangers in Miankale
Ali Kalane, head of Miankale Wildlife Refuge, reported on Wednesday, February 9th, of an attack by one hundred hunters on Miankale environmental rangers using shotguns.
In this regard, he told ISNA news agency: “More than 100 armed hunters in boats with covered faces targeted the environmental rangers in the Miankale area and hit them with shotgun pellets.”
According to him, six environmental rangers were attacked in this incident, but none of them were injured due to “maintaining a safe distance.”
The head of Miankale Wildlife Refuge further added that “hunters are carrying out these destructive actions in an organized manner with coordination through cyberspace.”
No further details regarding the specifics and date of this attack have been released.
Ali Kalane, while warning of the repetition of these attacks, expressed regret over the lack of defensive equipment for environmental rangers, including bulletproof vests and pepper spray, as well as the absence of suitable boats for protecting wetlands.
Meanwhile, Hossein-Ali Ebrahimi, the director general of the Environmental Protection Department of Mazandaran Province, announced the arrest of several of these attacking hunters by law enforcement.
The Young Journalists Club also reported that attacks by unauthorized hunters on Miankale environmental rangers have a history in recent years. For example, on February 14, 2020, a similar attack resulted in four environmental rangers being wounded, but the recent attacks have been “more extensive” and “unprecedented.”
Miankale Wildlife Refuge is located at the southern end of the Caspian Sea and northeast of Bahshahr city, and is one of the habitats of terrapins, collared pratincoles, swallows, and other migratory birds.
Source: Voice of America
