QUETTA- Balochistan High Court today ordered cancellation of areas allotted to Arabs and foreigners hunting for the rare houbara bustard in the province.
According to our sources, it is now illegal for Arab royal family members and other foreigners to hunt wild birds.
Justice Jamal Mandokhail and Justice Ejaz Swati issued the order over petitions filed by two citizens Muhammad Aslam Bhootani and Muhammad Saleem.
In 2012, the federal government had issued 29 special permits to the royal family and Arab high officials for hunting the internationally protected bird species houbara bustard. Previously, a Saudi prince poached over 2,100 internationally protected houbara bustards in a 21-day hunting safari in Chagai, Balochistan, during which the royal also indulged in illegal hunting in protected areas.