Phnom Penh — Cambodian officials have seized 1.5 tonnes of illegal ivory and animal parts hidden in a timber shipment from Mozambique that was destined for China, a wildlife charity and an official said on Thursday. The huge haul — one of the largest seizures in Cambodia this year — highlights the Southeast Asian nation’s key role in a lucrative and ecologically disastrous illegal wildlife trade primarily fuelled by Chinese demand. According to Wildlife Alliance, a Cambodia-based conservation group which helps authorities track smugglers, customs officials made the bust while searching some shipping containers last Friday on the outskirts of Phnom Penh. Hidden behind rare timber logs, they found 1.3 tonnes of African elephant tusks, 10 cheetah skulls, 82kg of animal bones and 137kg of pangolin scales. "This is a huge case with too many dead elephants. We should be seeking justice for these animals," Kdov Nuch, customs director at Kandal dry port where the interception was conducted,...
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