Afghan Police Shoot Regular Bird-Bird Full of "Suspicious Metal Stuff"
Authorities in Afghanistan are investigating a bizarre incident involving a wild bird outfitted with explosives and surveillance equipment* found walking along a road, NBC News reports.
"We are gathering all the stuff," said Faryab province police chief Abdul Nabi Ilham, "but found parts of what looks to be GPS and a small camera."
According to Ilham, officers decided to shoot the strange bird after they saw it bore a radio antenna. Described as "larger than an eagle," the robo-bird exploded when shot, scattering "suspicious metal stuff."
Police said this was the first time they had "made such an encounter," presumably meaning one with an exploding cybernetic bird.
*UPDATE: Twitter user @vincereestviver makes a compelling case for the mysterious bird being a rare houbara bustard carrying a wildlife tracker. Why the bird would be rigged with explosives—as the initial report says it was—is still unclear.
@hudsonhongo that bird with a bomb is an endangered Houbara Bustard with a tracker on it. pic.twitter.com/e1813t6ypT
— odette (@vincereestviver) November 30, 2014
UPDATE 2: Aaron Bernstein points out that the phrase "Houbara Conservation" can be made out during a close-up of the equipment, making this less of a weird cyberbird and more of a regular bird inaccurately described.
Aaron Bernstein points out that the phrase "Houbara Conservation" can be made out during a close-up of the equipment, making this less of a weird cyberbird and more of a regular bird inaccurately described.
