Botswana approves killing of 23 elephants for independence celebrations
By
asserted
Botswana → approve → celebrations
Published Oct. 2, 2026, 3:28 p.m. ET
See more of our coverage in your search results.
GABORONE, Botswana — Botswana’s government authorized the killing of 23 elephants for its independence day celebrations this week, drawing criticism from conservationists and one of its former presidents.
asserted
government → publish → presidents
The licenses to hunt the elephants were issued in districts across the country, with each receiving a portion of the overall quota.
asserted
each → hunt → quota
The elephants would provide meat for needy rural communities, authorities said Friday in defense of the move.
asserted
authorities → provide → move
While African savanna elephants are listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the southern African nation of Botswana has a large elephant population estimated at around 130,000, more than any other country.
asserted
nation → list → country
Its controlled annual elephant hunting quotas have sparked criticism before, but the government has defended them as necessary to manage elephant numbers and try and limit human-elephant conflict.
asserted
government → control → conflict
Botswana lifted a ban on hunting elephants in 2019, largely because of their burgeoning numbers.
asserted
Botswana → lift → numbers
Botswana has issued annual quotas to hunt between 200 and more than 400 elephants recently, depending on the year.
asserted
Botswana → issue → year
The government also authorized this week the killing of dozens of antelope as part of the initiative, which coincided with Botswana celebrating the 60th anniversary of its independence from Britain on Wednesday.
asserted
Botswana → authorize → Wednesday
Botswana’s Elephant Protection Society said the decision to kill elephants was reckless and might provoke herds to be more hostile to people they live near.
uncertain
they → say → people
“When one elephant is shot, the rest become defensive,” it said.
asserted
it → shoot → ?
Elephants can be extremely destructive and dangerous, and several African countries must confront the problem of elephant herds destroying farmers’ crops and infrastructure as well as killing or injuring people.
asserted
herds → confront → people
Other nations, including neighbor South Africa, also issue annual quotas for the hunting of elephants.
asserted
nations → include → elephants
Botswana, which attracts international tourists for its rich wildlife, has a policy to compensate local people for human-wildlife conflict incidents, and hundreds of cases are recorded each year.
asserted
hundreds → attract → cases
Botswana’s elephant numbers were an international talking point in 2024 when then-President Mokgweetsi Masisi and his government responded to criticism of trophy hunting from the U.K. and Germany by offering to send tens of thousands of elephants to those countries.
asserted
Masisi → respond → countries
“It is very easy to sit in Berlin and have an opinion on our affairs in Botswana,” Masisi was quoted as saying by German newspaper Bild, adding that managing elephants was “no joke.”
asserted
managing → sit → elephants
This week’s elephant hunting was defended by Dimakatso Ntshebe, deputy director at the government’s department of wildlife and national parks.
asserted
hunting → defend → wildlife
“Wildlife conservation must deliver meaningful benefits to the communities that live alongside wildlife and contribute to its protection,” he said Friday.
asserted
he → deliver → protection
But Ian Khama, who served as Botswana’s president from 2008 to 2018 and now holds a traditional governance role as a regional chief, said he disagreed with the move, and it created an “expectation” that elephants would be killed for future national events.
asserted
elephants → serve → events
The Aporia
