Free Republic

A Florida man turned lizard smuggler pleaded guilty this week in federal court to trafficking live water monitor lizards from the Philippines. Akbar Akram, of Holiday, Florida, near Tampa, admitted to illegally importing more than 20 live water monitor lizards in 2016, according to the plea documents. The documents say Akram stuffed the lizards into socks and sealed them with tape, before hiding them inside electronic equipment which was shipped under a false label.

Beirut (dpa) - Pro-Iranian Hezbollah guerrillas in Lebanon confiscated the remains of an Israeli-tagged falcon which was shot dead after it attacked a henhouse in the eastern Bekaa Valley. The falcon with a ``Tel Aviv University'' ring on its foot entered Lebanese airspace on Wednesday and attacked a henhouse in the ancient city of Baalbeck, where Hezbollah maintains its strongholds. The farmer who was alerted by the squawking of his flock took his rifle and headed outside to find the hawk attacking his poultry. He shot the bird - found the tag on its foot with a Hebrew inscription. He...