Reports | 25 05 2020
The Islamic State [IS, or Daesh] published on Sunday pictures of the bald northern ibis bird, reassuring the "concerned" world for the safety of the endangered bird.
Activists and opposition pages shared the images on Facebook, amid sarcastic comments of the bird "swearing allegiance" to the organization which dominates the ancient city of Palmyra, where scientists had discovered a colony of rare birds in 2002.
Asmaa al-Assad, the wife of the Syrian regime's President, hd earlier warned on her Facebook account of the threat to which the ibis bird is exposed with IS' dominance of the city; thereby sparking a wide campaign of criticism and ridicule. The First Lady's preoccupation with the birds, comes at a time when the Syrian regime bombards its own population with explosive barrels.
It is worth noting that the BBC website quoted a nature preservation agency in Lebanon who advised that IS had released three ibis birds previously held in captivity, after their guards had escaped the violent battles two months ago. The said agency offered at the time a reward of $1,000 for any information on the whereabouts of the fourth bird; and it is not yet known if this promised reward also includes those elements of IS who found the bird.