Botswana lifts elephant hunting ban citing 'conflict' between animals and humans

Elephants in Botswana will no longer be legally protected from hunting after the country lifted the ban on targeting the animals.

The country in southern Africa had barred elephant hunting in 2014 but has now revoked this decision.

In a statement, Ministry of Environment, Natural Resources Conservation and Tourism, cited "human-elephant conflict" as a factor.

It also said elephants were "causing a lot of damage as they kill livestock in large numbers".

There are around 130,000 elephants in the country

The "livelihoods" of some people was also affected and the department said: "The general consensus from those consulted was that the hunting ban should be lifted."

The Ministry claimed "it will work with all stakeholders to ensure that re-instatement of hunting is done in an orderly and ethical manner".

The Government had banned elephant hunting in 2014

In a video explaining the decision, people spoke of elephants attacking humans and damaging infrastructure in areas.

It claimed the animals are travelling further and dispersing to more areas, with increased contact between elephants and humans.

Botswana is home to 130,000 elephants, making it home to more of them than any other country on the planet.

The decision has been met with a backlash online.

Many claimed the decision appeared to be a political move, to increase the government's popularity with rural voters.