Israeli activist Ofir Drori founded the international network EAGLE (Eco Activists for Government and Law Enforcement) to combat illegal wildlife trade and poaching. Utilizing skills acquired during his service in the IDF, he and his team help suppress the activities of criminal syndicates across Africa.
The organization brings together seven projects in Cameroon, Congo, Togo, Ivory Coast, Senegal, Uganda, and Guinea. According to The Times of Israel, the network created by Drori has helped bring approximately 3,000 major wildlife traffickers to justice.
The idea for EAGLE came to Drori in Cameroon when he encountered an attempt by smugglers to sell a chimpanzee infant, and local authorities offered him a bribe. Following this, he developed a plan to infiltrate criminal networks, identify organizers, and bring cases to court verdicts.
Ofir Drori notes that he actively applies his experience from officer training in the IDF in his work, including skills in team management, staff motivation, conducting undercover investigations, and operations involving undercover agents. According to him, poaching represents an international criminal network trading in ivory, rhino horns, pangolin scales, and wild animal meat.
One of the main results of EAGLE's work has been the dismantling of three Asian criminal groups, each of which had destroyed about 30,000 elephants — approximately 10% of the entire African elephant population. Currently, the organization is facing financial difficulties: it requires $400,000 to continue its operations.
Source: 9tv.co.il
