Four rare gorillas are to be returned to Cameroon after being smuggled to Malaysia four years ago.
The critically endangered Western Lowland gorillas will make their 18-hour journey from South Africa to the Limbe Wildlife Sanctuary in south-west Cameroon.
Smuggled illegally out of the country in 2002, the primates were kept at Taiping Zoo in Malaysia until their rescue in 2004, reports the BBC.
With fewer than 100,000 Western Lowland gorillas thought to be living in the wild, the news will serve as a reminder of the importance of sanctuaries for the preservation of wildlife.
The ordeal will no doubt encourage tourists to visit wildlife parks and sanctuaries rather than zoos, where rare animals can be seen in their natural habitat.
Two leading conservation charities, The Aspinall Foundation and Tusk Trust, announced this month that they will be setting-up anti-poaching measures to protect the Western Lowland gorillas in neighboring Congo.
Cameroon has developed a reputation for eating the meat of endangered wild animals such as gorillas.
The Cameroon Wildlife Aid Fund charity has pioneered an education programme in an attempt to discourage children from eating it.
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