JOHANNESBURG: The United Nations on Wednesday banned global trade in highly endangered pangolins, a scaly animal with the dubious distinction of being the world’s most poached mammal.

Member states of the UN’s Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, known as CITES, voted to place the eight species of pangolin on the convention’s “Appendix I”, which prohibits any cross-border movement in the animals or their body parts for commercial purposes.

“Giving pangolins full protection under CITES will eliminate any question about legality of trade, making it harder for criminals to traffic them and increasing the consequences for those who do”, said Ginette Hemley of conservation group WWF.

All eight of the world’s species of pangolin, which range from 12 to 39 inches in length, are threatened with extinction.

Published in Dawn September 29th, 2016