Pakistan YouTuber ordered to make animal welfare videos for owning a lion

A Pakistani YouTube star has been ordered to create 12 animal welfare videos as punishment for illegally owning a Lion Cub.

Rajab Butt, who has 5.6 million subscribers, was pictured with the Cub after he was given it at his wedding last month by the owner of another YouTube channel.

Under a community service order, Mr Butt was ordered to produce a five-minute video a month for a year to educate his audience.

The cub was shifted to Lahore Safari Zoo by the authorities and named Bhati.

In a statement, Mr Butt said he regretted accepting the cube and admitted that “keeping wild animals in such circumstances is inappropriate”.

“As a social media influencer, I have to create positive content. I was not authorized to keep the lion cube and thus set the wrong example,” he added.

The court also ordered the wildlife department to help Mr Butt produce his educational content.

A wildlife officer reported Mr Butt to police after seeing a video he posted on his YouTube channel last month of receiving the cube at his wedding.

It was given to him in a cage by Umar Dola, who runs another YouTube channel called Lion Hub.

Mr Dolla claimed in court that he was still the legal owner of the animal. However, the judge ruled that it had been seized by Butt, local media reported.

Mr Butt said he would “provide public service through my social media platforms and spread a positive message about wildlife rights”.

Tariq Janjua, director of Lahore Safari Zoo, told local media that lions cannot be tamed and keeping them is both cruel to the animal and dangerous to humans.