(Adnkronos) – Residents of Pakistani-administered Kashmir killed a leopard after a series of consecutive attacks on civilians, in which a girl was killed, the Wildlife Department said today.
A common leopard attacked an 8-year-old girl and dragged her into the forest in the Jehlum Valley, in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (Ajk) last weekend. The girl was later found dead.
The next day, another child, who was reportedly returning from the girl’s funeral, was also attacked. Locals rescued the child, but the attacks sparked panic in the valley: people locked themselves in their homes until the animal was killed.
“The leopard was killed by the inhabitants,” a spokesman for the Ajk Wildlife Department said today.
The spokesman said more rangers have been deployed in the area and the population has participated in safety drills to prepare for similar incidents in the future. Revenge incidents against leopards in Pakistan are not uncommon, especially after attacks on livestock or humans.
The exact number of leopards in the country is unknown, but environmentalists believe these big cats are exposed to a number of threats, including encountering humans, illegal hunting and reduced forest cover.
