Tigers seized from Thai temple in wildlife trafficking bust

The Tiger Templepromotes itself as a wildlife sanctuary.

Recently, amida global effort to curb the trafficking of wildlife, the Wat Pa Luang Ta Bua Temple, or Tiger Temple,hascome under fire for alleged ties toanimal abuse and contributing to the illegal trade in tigers. On Monday, three of the popular attraction's big cats were removed by Thai authorities.

The temple has more than 100 tigers.

Located in Thailand'sKanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, the Buddhist temple has become a tourist destination where visitors canbottle-feed the cubs.Wildlife activists have accused the temple's monks of illegally breeding their tigers, andsome visitors report that the animals can appear drugged. The temple denies these accusations.

This woman was photographed there in February.

Tranquillizerguns were used to sedate three tigers on Monday.

The big cats were transported to a government-run facility.

The temple has been in conflictwith authorities since 2001.

Monday's raid was the latest moveto bring the tigers under state control and officials from the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation said they planned to remove more tigers on Tuesday.In January and February,wildlife officials were able to remove10tigers.Priorattempts to inspect the tigers have largely been blocked by the temple's leaders.

International pressure has spurred actionover trafficking.

Adisorn Nuchdamrong, deputy directorgeneral of the Department of National Parks, said ateam had been able to confiscate the tigers thanks to a warrant obtained a few hours before the operation.

The tigers are headedto a state-owned sanctuary.

Thailand has long been a hub for the illicit trafficking of wildlife and forest products, including ivory. Exotic birds, mammals and reptiles, some of them endangered species, can often be found on sale in markets.

The government introduced new animal welfare laws last year but activists accuse authorities of not enforcing the legislation properly. In 2015, when this photo was taken,Thai conservation officers checked 143 Bengal tigers living at the templeand found them to be in good health.