Khan faces bird backlash

An Arab prince has been granted a permit to hunt endangered birds with falcons in Pakistan, prompting wildlife groups to accuse Imran Khan’s government of backtracking on a pledge to protect nature. A group of Qatari royals has paid a reported US$100,000 (NZ$146,000) to hunt the Houbara bustard, which migrates to Pakistan each winter and is prized in the Middle East, where its meat is believed to be an aphrodisiac. When in opposition, Khan was scathing when Pakistan’s supreme court lifted a ban on hunting the bird in 2016, after Sharif’s government had complained that it risked damaging relations with Arab states.