Attacked with an axe, stabbed with a broken bottle: these are the photos that show the horrific injuries inflicted on anti-poaching rangers in Mozambique.

An anti-poaching patrol was attacked, allegedly by up to 60 people as they tried to take two rhino poaching suspects to a police station near the Greater Lebombo Conservancy, the International Anti-Poaching Foundation (IAPF) said on Monday.

IAPF founder Damien Mander said a township in the area was “known for harbouring rhino poaching syndicates”.

Now out of intensive care, the rangers were lucky to escape with their lives. The attack happened earlier this month, although authorities had not publicly confirmed it. This was the first time details had been made public.

Mander said the attack filled him with “deep anger”. The rangers had a police escort through the township. When they came under attack, the officers apparently fled.

One of the three rangers was knocked unconscious. Another was struck in the head with an axe and stabbed in the neck with a broken bottle.

An off-duty police officer protected the men and likely saved their lives. They were airlifted to safety. All three were out of danger, but would take some time to recover fully, Mander said.

Syndicates looking to target rhinos in the Kruger National Park were known to operate from Mozambique. To get to the southern part of the park, poachers had to cross the 220 000ha Greater Lebombo Conservancy. This put the conservancy on the front-line of the fight to save the world’s rhinos.

“We’re not just on the front-line of the rhino wars, we are behind enemy lines,” Mander told News24 in a telephonic interview.

In June, the foundation reported that a gang with suspected links to rhino poaching raided a village near the conservancy, targeting the homes of those working in a local anti-poaching team. A number of scouts were injured.

Mander said they had had significant impact in reducing the flow of poachers coming through the area to the Kruger National Park.

“We’ve taken business away from organised crime.”

IAPF Facebook – Unabridged

Yesterday at 12:41 ·

To all our supporters,

It is with deep anger that I share the following news of an attack on our rangers.

These pictures are of two of our head anti-poaching rangers who operate in Mozambique’s Greater Lebombo Conservancy. As a buffer area that straddles the entire eastern flank of Kruger National Park’s Intensive Protection Zone and the protection of up to 9,000 rhino, it is one of the most critical pieces of land on the planet for rhino conservation.

After arresting 2 armed poachers, one of our patrols was transporting them under police escort to base. While moving through a township known for harbouring rhino poaching syndicates, they were attacked by a mob of up to 60 people. Our team’s police escort fled, and in the melee, one ranger was knocked unconscious and left for dead.

Another was struck in the head with an axe, sustaining a fractured skull and bleeding on the brain, then stabbed in the neck with a broken bottle. All were severely beaten. The team’s truck was also badly damaged and important patrol equipment, including radio communications, was damaged or is missing.

A lone, off-duty police officer from the town came and stood over the rangers with his weapon in the middle of the mob to protect the rangers from further injury. Our helicopter landed soon after and evacuated our injured men to HQ where all were stabilized and airlifted to hospital.

The actions of this police officer, along with immediate first aid and rapid evacuation by helicopter, almost certainly saved the lives of these men. This is only possible because of you, our dedicated donors and I thank you emphatically.

We are able to report that all the injured men are now out of danger, although full recovery will take quite some time. The off-duty police officer involved has been nominated for a bravery award.

We are assured the Mozambican authorities are rigorously investigating this very serious matter.

Our team, now more dedicated than ever, continues to conduct anti-poaching patrols to protect rhino, other wildlife and their habitats. Unfortunately, we are now several men down for the time being and we face a serious shortage of off-road vehicles which are critical to our operations. Our fundraising efforts continue with urgency.

Thank you for your ongoing support and dedication to the mission.

Sincerely,

Damien Mander

Please continue to support IAPF’s efforts

Email info@iapf.org or visit www.iapf.org