Joining a growing number of airlines that have made it clear they will not transport hunting trophies, Qatar Airways has extended its existing embargo of trophies identified by CITES, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.
This news comes on the heels of the international outrage as a result of the killing of Cecil, a beloved, wild lion shot by an American dentist on a hunting trip last month in Zimbabwe. Cecil, outfitted with a tracking device, was the subject of a study by an Oxford University-based conservation group.
The airline’s existing ban on carrying hunting trophies for animals on CITES I – a list of the 1,200 most endangered species – has been extended to include all species included in the CITES I, II and III lists, which include more than 35,000 protected species (5,000 animal and 30,000 plants).