Illegally Held Cheetah Cubs Are Freed by GIs

U.S. troops flew two endangered cheetah cubs to the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, after instigating their rescue from a remote village where a restaurant owner had held the cubs captive and forced them to fight for entertainment.

The male and female cubs, whom the soldiers named Scout and Patch, were released on the grounds of the president’s official residence after their journey from the eastern hamlet of Gode.

U.S. troops doing humanitarian work noticed the cubs last month. Ethiopian government veterinarian Fekadu Shiferaw confiscated the cubs and handed them to the troops.

Keeping wild animals without a license is illegal, but Ethiopia’s wildlife laws are rarely enforced.