In Austria, the head of a zoo made headlines with an application for a gun permit: he wanted to buy a pump pistol and a large-caliber pistol. If necessary, he wants to shoot animals with the guns. The authorities have rejected the request, now a court must decide.
The proceedings are currently pending before the Vienna Administrative Court, the Austrian news agency APA reported on Thursday.
The free newspaper ‘Heute’ was the first to report on the case. The director of Vienna’s Schönbrunn Zoo, Stephan Hering-Hagenbeck, applied for the special permit in March 2021. It is unclear when the court will decide. The hearing was adjourned indefinitely on June 30, it said.
According to the article, Hering-Hagenbeck justified his request by saying that normal shotguns cannot stop lions, leopards or bears from escaping their enclosures. He also pointed out the risk of deliberate liberation of animals by animal rights activists.
The zoo’s director also told “Today” that the police would not be able to arrive quickly enough in an emergency and would not find their way around the zoo.
According to the information, the Austrian authorities took the view that defense against dangerous attacks was a matter for the state. (cst/sda/apa)
Soource :Watson
I am Amelia James, a passionate journalist with a deep-rooted interest in current affairs. I have more than five years of experience in the media industry, working both as an author and editor for 24 Instant News. My main focus lies in international news, particularly regional conflicts and political issues around the world.
