KUALA LUMPUR: The Saudi Arabian Embassy in Malaysia organised a mass ‘brisk walking’ activity at the Perdana Botanical Gardens in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday evening in conjunction with the International Day of the Arabian Leopard.
The Saudi Arabian Ambassador to Malaysia, Mesaad Ibrahim Abdullah Al Sulaim, also participated in the activity.
He told Bernama that the activity is aimed at spreading awareness about environmental issues affecting leopards in general and the Arabian leopard in particular.
February 10 is designated as the International Day of the Arabian Leopard by the United Nations (UN).
The 7-kilometre ‘brisk walking’ event, which started at 3 p.m. (Saturday), was attended by officials from the Saudi Arabian embassy, the Arab community in Malaysia, the general public, and a group of students from the Saudi Arabian School in Kuala Lumpur.
Secretary of the Saudi Arabian Ambassador to Malaysia, Nisreen Abu Bakr, added that the Arabian leopard, found in the Arabian Peninsula, is becoming extinct and rarely seen, with the remaining population estimated to be less than 200 individuals.
She explained that in addition to Saudi Arabia, the Arabian leopard is also reported to be found in Yemen, Oman, and the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia has taken initiatives to conserve the species, which is now on the verge of extinction.
“We are currently in the stage of preserving this leopard species from further extinction, protecting them from becoming victims of illegal hunting activities,“ she added. – Bernama