The market for falcons is soaring as wild populations decline
Gulf royals risk killing a sport they love
THOUGH ITS eyes are covered, the falcon looks frightened in the video. It sits frozen on its perch as a dozen excited men bid for the creature. The scene plays out in the Libyan city of Tobruk. But the bidders, phones in hand, are relaying prices to traders in the Gulf. When the offers top 1m dinars ($220,000) those in the room yell Allahu akbar (God is great). Finally the bird is sold to a man in a camouflage jacket for 2.25m dinars, making it one of the most expensive falcons in the world.
This article appeared in the Middle East & Africa section of the print edition under the headline “Beak demand”
Middle East & Africa February 26th 2022
- The enemies of South African democracy have the judiciary in their sights
- West Africa’s coastal states are bracing for a jihadist storm
- Names in southern Africa are both creative and revealing
- The UAE tries to crack down on dirty money
- Are Cairo’s menacing minibuses on their way out?
- The market for falcons is soaring as wild populations decline
From the February 26th 2022 edition
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