London: Hundreds of ISIS fighters retreating from the battlefield in Iraq have reportedly stormed a wildlife sanctuary in the war-torn country and stolen some 7,000 black-tailed gazelles so they could slaughter them later when their traditional meat source dries up.
According to a MailOnline report, the militants have drugged the animals before loading them in a truck so they could transport them across the border in Syria.
The ISIS fighters are treating from the country due to the strong offensive from the Iraqi army and the allied troops.
The terror group had last month withdrew from Rutba, a city in western Iraq 90 miles from the Jordanian border.
The city is close to a wildlife preserve, which is home to thousands of gazelles, also known as black-tailed gazelles.
An official has accused the ISIS of stealing thousands of gazelles from the wildlife preserve.
He said that they have put sedatives in the waterholes in order to the drug the animals.
It is assumed that the terror group plans to slaughter them and eat them if their regular meat supplies dry up.
Citing Iraqi official sources, the report said that the outfit have stolen around 7,000 gazelles from the preserve, a vast swath of land that stretches as far as the border with Saudi Arabia.
