Lions rescue Ethiopian girl from abductors

POLICE in Ethiopia say three lions rescued a 12-year-old girl kidnapped by men who wanted to force her into marriage, chasing off her abductors and guarding her until police and relatives tracked her down in a remote corner of the country.

The men had held the girl for seven days, repeatedly beating her, before the lions chased them away and guarded her for half a day before her family and police found her, Sergeant Wondimu Wedajo said.

“They stood guard until we found her and then they just left her like a gift and went back into the forest,” Mr Wondimu said.