Fear For Rhinos As Poachers Kill 500 In South Africa

Africa had nearly 23,300 specimens of rhino at the end of 2022, a more than five-percent rise on the previous year, according to the IUCN (Credit: AFP)

Conservationists raised the alarm on Tuesday as South Africa reported a sharp increase in rhino poaching, with almost 500 animals killed last year.

The country is home to a large majority of the world's rhinos and a hotspot for poaching, which is driven by demand from Asia, where horns are used in traditional medicine for their supposed therapeutic effect.