Bear rescued from bombed-out Ukrainian zoo gets new home in Scotland

London — A victim of Russia’s war in Ukraine is finding a new home in Scotland. Yampil, an Asiatic black bear, survived an unbearable ordeal.

“He has been through a lot,” said Adam Welsh, head of education at Five Sisters Zoo in West Calder, Scotland. “He’s been in the middle of a war zone, and he’s experienced some really horrible things.”

Ukrainian troops seized a bombed-out zoo in the midst of fighting in 2022, rescuing Yampil in the nick of time. He is named after the village in eastern Ukraine where he was saved. 

Nearly all the zoo’s other 200 animals died from starvation. Others were killed by bullets or shrapnel.

“We weren’t entirely sure if he’d be kind of experiencing something similar to the likes of PTSD,” Welsh said.  

Yampil was skin and bones when he was taken to Belgium to recuperate. He was given more than the bear-necessities: some sweet treats.

“Bears love it,” said Frederik Thoelen, a biologist at the Nature Help Center in Belgium. “If there is one thing that bears love, then it’s definitely things with sugar.”

Yampil is now a healthy 440 pounds and getting his bearings in his new Scottish surroundings.

“He seems to be actually quite sleepy right now, so he’s been spending a lot of time indoors,” Welsh said.

With no signs yet of post-traumatic stress disorder, zoo keepers are hopeful the 12-year-old will have only peaceful years ahead. 

Ian Lee

Ian Lee is a CBS News correspondent based in London, where he reports for CBS News, CBS Newspath and CBS News Streaming Network. Lee, who joined CBS News in March 2019, is a multi-award-winning journalist, whose work covering major international stories has earned him some of journalism’s top honors, including an Emmy, Peabody and the Investigative Reporters and Editors’ Tom Renner award.