Singapore makes biggest ever seizure of rhino horn worth US$830,000

Singaporean authorities have made their largest-ever rhino horn capture with a US $830,000 haul seized from a smuggler arriving from South Africa on Wednesday.

Twenty pieces of horn, totalling 34 kilogrammes (75 pounds), were reportedly found in two pieces of luggage on Tuesday at Singapore Changi Airport, according to the city-National state's Parks Board.

Sniffer dogs discovered the contraband, which belonged to a passenger continuing on to Laos, the board reported, adding that the suspect had been detained.

In a statement, it claimed that "this is the largest seizure of rhinoceros horns in Singapore to date."

The International Convention on the Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) protects rhinos and forbids the trade of rhino horns internationally.

The board stated that after the seized horns have undergone genetic testing to determine their species, they would be destroyed to stop them from re-entering the market.

In certain regions of Asia, rhino horns are regarded as status symbols and are said to offer therapeutic benefits. Additionally, they are carved into jewellery and home furnishings like combs, buttons, and belt buckles.

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The poaching and illicit traffic in rhino horns have declined recently, but they still pose serious dangers to rhinos, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), which has its headquarters in Switzerland.

It claimed that between 2018 and 2021, more than 2,700 rhinos were poached in Africa, with 90 per centof the killings occurring in South Africa, primarily in the Kruger National Park.

The majority of rhinos in the world—nearly 80 per cent—live in South Africa.

(with inputs from agencies)