Cat rescued by Turkish soldier in Syria’s al-Bab receiving demands from around world 

ISTANBUL

Thousands of people have applied to adopt a cat that was rescued from Syria’s al-Bab by a Turkish soldier during the Euphrates Shield Operation last month. 

Specialized Sgt. Ömer Özkan found the cat, which was hungry and scared. He brought back the cat, dubbed Barış (“Peace” in Turkish), to military headquarters, where he took care of it for three months. 

Özkan then took to social media to call for help in taking care of the feline.

The Gaziantep-based Improving the Life of Living Animals Association (CAHİDE) contacted Özkan, after which Barış was brought to the Karkamış district near the border before eventually being transferred to Gaziantep on Feb. 21 after a two-day journey.

After the cat was mentioned on social media and television stations, a number of people from Turkey and overseas contacted association officials, asking to adopt the cat. 

Stating that they had received demands from the Netherlands, Germany, Austria and even Japan, the officials said the demands were being evaluated one by one to ensure the cat goes to a true animal lover. 

CAHİDE Executive Board member Cemal Güneş said the cat was very exhausted when they got it.

“He has now been vaccinated and is clean. I hope we will find a good home. Later on, [Özkan] came to visit us, and Barış knew him as soon as he entered the door. The cat loves the cage so much because he was afraid of the excessive bomb sounds. He feels safe here,” Güneş said. 

Güneş said everyone wanted to adopt the cat because it had become famous on social media. 

“He makes himself loved, he loves dogs and people. We want to give it to a real animal lover. It should be vaccinated on time. We want it to live in a warm environment. This is an eight-month-old cat. People from around the world want to adopt the cat but we want to see it after it is adopted,” Güneş said.