Camel plucked from minefield

Before the rescue: Trapped in a minefield

Animal rights activists in Israel have rescued a camel from a minefield on the border with Jordan by lifting it to safety.

The animal was plucked from danger by a lone rescuer who, undeterred by warning signs, climbed into the border zone using ladders and fitted a harness attached to a crane.

The ailing female camel had been wandering with a serious foot wound in the minefield for more than two weeks.

The camel was lifted out hooded to keep it calm

The rescuers covered the camel's head with a sack to prevent it from becoming scared while it was airborne.

A spokeswoman for the group Let Animals Live said the rescue was "just like in the movies".

The minefield was left over from the decades when Israel and Jordan were in a state of war, before their 1994 peace treaty.

The camel's owner, a Bedouin Arab living nearby in Israel, no longer wanted the animal because of its injury. It was unclear if the injury was caused by a mine.

The rescuers said they would take the camel to a nearby veterinarian, who would care for it.