2-Year-Old Girl's Hand Amputated After Lion Mauls Her At Zoo

A 2-year-old girl who was left critically injured after being mauled by a lion at a zoo in Yemen had to get her hand amputated. Donia Idris Hammoud was attacked by the big cat when visiting the zoo in Ibb Governorate, central Yemen, with her father.

The toddler had put her hand inside the lion cage while her father was clicking photos of her next to the lion, Gulf News reported.

"The little girl, Donia, inserted her hand through one of the holes in the protection net for the lion’s cage, which bit her hand while her father was busy taking a souvenir picture of her," EG 24 News reported citing local outlets.

The child's father, who remains unidentified, fell into a coma after witnessing the attack. The toddler and her father were rushed to the hospital for treatment. The girl's left hand had to be amputated after the violent attack.

Human rights activists said that the child’s father and the administration of the zoo, which is under the control of the Al Houthi militia should be held accountable for the tragic incident. They criticized the officials for being irresponsible in allowing young children to come close to the cages of wild animals. They also observed that officials failed to provide adequate safety measures, and iron nets are not sufficient for enclosures of wild animals.

Last month, a man in India was arrested after he attempted to enter a lion's enclosure in a zoo believing it has diamonds hidden in it. G Sai Kumar, from the city of Hyderabad in southern India attempted to jump into the lion enclosure at Nehru Zoo Park; the video of the incident went viral on social media. The video showed the man sitting on a boulder along the border of an enclosure while an African lion strolled at the bottom of the boulder. Park officials rescued him from the enclosure without any injuries and turned him in to the police. Cops said the man is believed to be mentally disturbed.