Critically endangered antelopes return to Kenya from Czech zoo

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Four critically endangered mountain bongos arrived in Kenya on their way to their native forests after years in the care of a zoo in the Czech Republic.

Bongos, rare antelopes known for their striking stripes, have been declared critically endangered due to poaching and diseases. There are less than 100 mountain bongos left in the wild, according to the Kenyan government. Many were sent to Europe in the 1980s after a major rinderpest disease outbreak killed thousands.

The four returnees arrived from Dvur Kralove Zoo packed in wooden crates at Kenya’s main airport aboard a KLM cargo flight and were received by the country’s Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi and Tourism Minister Rebecca Miano, who hailed it as a “homecoming of the majestic bongos.”

It's the third such return in recent years, last one being in Feb. 2025. After a period of quarantine and acclimatization, the bongos will be sent to the Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy, which houses 102 bongos, for a stay before being released into the wild.

The conservancy runs a National Recovery and Action Plan for the Mountain Bongo in collaboration with the government and plans to use the four new bongos to interbreed and strengthen the gene pool.

Kenyan-raised nature explorers and filmmakers Jahawi and Elke Bertolli told The Associated Press that the new bongos will bring genetic variation that is critical for their conservation, adding that the species plays a key role in protecting the forests that are vital to Kenya’s water supply.

Czech Republic Ambassador Nicol Adamcova said the relocation reflects a long-standing partnership between the Czech Republic and Kenya in conservation and a shared commitment to protecting endangered species.

Mudavadi said such milestones show what can be achieved when policy, science, and collaboration come together in pursuit of a shared conservation goal.

“I commend all stakeholders involved and assure you of Government’s unwavering support in strengthening conservation frameworks and ensuring that Kenya’s biodiversity continues to thrive,” he said.

Miano said that bringing in genetically diverse bongos is a critical step to strengthen the species' breeding resilience.

Four mountain bongos, a type of antelope, repatriated from the Czech Republic, are offloaded from a plane at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi, Kenya, Tuesday, April 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga) CORRECTION: Type corrected to antelope, instead of gazelle

Kenya Wildlife Service personnel walk past four mountain bongos, a type of antelope, repatriated from the Czech Republic, upon arrival at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi, Kenya, Tuesday, April 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga) CORRECTION: Type corrected to antelope, instead of gazelle

Four mountain bongos, a type of antelope, repatriated from the Czech Republic, arrive at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi, Kenya, Tuesday, April 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga) CORRECTION: Type corrected to antelope, instead of gazelle

FILE - A rare mountain bongo leaps from a shipping crate after traveling from the United States to the slopes of Mountain Kenya, their natural habitat, on Jan. 30, 2004. (AP Photo/Chris Tomlinson, File)

Four mountain bongos, a type of antelope, repatriated from the Czech Republic, arrive at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi, Kenya, Tuesday, April 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga) CORRECTION: Type corrected to antelope, instead of gazelle

BRUSSELS (AP) — European Union countries must funnel their energy aid chiefly to vulnerable households and industries or risk wasting billions of euros as the Iran war hits oil and gas prices, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen warned on Wednesday.

The U.S.-Israel war, combined with retaliation from Iran such as choking the Strait of Hormuz, is costing the EU almost 500 million euros ($600 million) a day, raising prices at the pumps and fears of a jet fuel shortage within weeks.

Von der Leyen said the world’s biggest trading bloc must draw on the lessons of the 2022 fuel crisis – when Russia used its energy might against European countries to undermine their support for Ukraine – to avoid further hurting their economies.

More than 350 billion euros “were spent on untargeted measures and this had a huge impact on member states finances,” she told EU lawmakers in Strasbourg, France. “So let us not make the same mistake again, and let’s focus our support where it matters most.”

Just as Europe broke its energy dependency on Russia, the bloc must now end its reliance on supplies from the outside world, by making better use of renewable sources like wind and solar, as well as nuclear power, von der Leyen said.

“Our over dependency on imported fossil fuels makes us vulnerable,” she said.

Since the war started in 2022, Russian gas imports into the 27 nations have fallen from 45% to 12% last year. Coal imports were banned by sanctions, and oil imports shrank from 27% 2022 to 2%, with only Hungary and Slovakia continuing to buy from Russia.

Von der Leyen said the impact of the Iran war “may echo for months or even years to come” and that the path to energy independence lies in “homegrown, affordable, clean energy supply from renewables to nuclear.”

She urged EU countries to use more electricity generated by renewable sources and nuclear sources to power transport and planes, heat homes, and undercut the dependency on fossil fuels in industry.

Electricity makes up less than a quarter of the bloc’s energy consumption.

EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jørgensen warned last week that the Iran war has not just produced “a short-term, small increase in prices. This is a crisis that is probably as serious as the 1973 and the 2022 crises combined.”

He said Europe has been forced onto the defensive and has little control over events.

“Even in a best-case scenario, it’s still bad,” Jørgensen said. “Whether or not we will be in a security of supply crisis is primarily a result of what goes on in the Middle East. What we can do is to try and prevent, and limit” the damage.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, center, arrives for the EU Summit in Nicosia, Cyprus, Friday, April 24, 2026. (Yves Herman, Pool Photo via AP)

Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides, center, European Parliament President Roberta Metsola, left, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen pose after signing the "One Europe, One Market" roadmap during the EU Summit in Nicosia, Cyprus, Friday, April 24, 2026. (Yves Herman, Pool Photo via AP)

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen speaks during a press conference after the EU Summit in Nicosia, Cyprus, Friday, April 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)