Kaavan, the elephant once dubbed the world's loneliest, has died in a sanctuary in Cambodia. The 36-year-old pachyderm had been rescued from a zoo in Islamabad, Pakistan, in 2020 after years of isolation and poor treatment.
Kaavan was gifted to Pakistan's then-military ruler General Zia-ul-Haq in 1985 by Sri Lanka, following a request from his daughter Zain Zia. He was kept at Marghuzar Zoo in Islamabad, where he lived in a small, barren enclosure with no trees or natural features. His only companion, a female elephant named Saheli, died in 2012, allegedly from sepsis caused by bull-hook wounds.
For years, Kaavan was forced to perform for visitors, prodded with bull hooks to raise his trunk as a begging bowl. He suffered from infected wounds, obesity, and psychosis. A coalition of volunteers, including the Friends of Islamabad Zoo and Four Paws International, campaigned for his release, with support from American singer Cher.
In 2020, Kaavan was moved to the Cambodia Wildlife Sanctuary, where he spent his final years. His death marks the end of a long struggle for freedom for an elephant whose life began with a prayer and ended with a song.
