Around 40 animals including five lions have been rescued from a zoo in the war-torn territory of Gaza.
The beleaguered creatures were kept in dire conditions in the facility in Rafah, in the south of the strip, ahead of their release from bleak cages.
Monkeys, pelicans and foxes were also among the species to be saved by Four Paws International, whose vets and volunteers loaded them into trucks.
The group are headed to the Israeli border in the northern Gaza Strip and the animals will later set course for resettlement in Jordan and Africa.
The action marks the fourth and largest Gaza rescue mission by the Vienna-based organisation since Israel and Egypt imposed a blockade on the Palestinian enclave of Gaza in 2007.
A blockade and three wars between Israel and Gaza's Hamas rulers have made living conditions dire for Gaza's two-million residents.
This has led to a lack of care for animals in the area, many of which have died of cold and hunger in makeshift zoos as keepers failed to provide adequate care.
