The loss of a 13-year-old lion has led to the adoption of the resolution titled Tackling Illicit Trafficking in Wildlife by the United Nations (UN) to combat illegal wildlife trafficking and trade. The resolution was proposed by Gabon and Germany initially, and sponsored by more than 70 countries.

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The 193 members of the United Nations General Assembly are mourning the death of Cecil the lion. Cecil, a lion in Zimbabwe's Hwange National Park, was killed by U.S. dentist Walter Palmer recently. The incident has drawn condemnation from wildlife activists across the world.

Harald Braun, the German Ambassador, expressed anger over the way the adored lion was killed. He said the resolution will protect wildlife by fighting all forms of illegal hunting. The resolution will look protect flora and fauna across the world.

The resolution calls for more severe punishment for people found guilty of wildlife trafficking. It also calls on nations to ratify the UN convention and provide assistance to communities most affected by illegal wildlife trafficking.

The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) has warned that wildlife trade is a critical global challenge because of the growing market for ivory.

"It is important to balance the survival needs and economic needs of the natives otherwise many more species will be pushed towards extinction. This will endanger the ecosystem and create havoc for humans too by affecting their livelihood, health, local and national security," said Susan Liberman, WCS's vice-persident for international policy. "This resolution sets a powerful framework for governments to collectively tackle this global issue, and treat it as the transnational organized crime that is has become."

This murder of Cecil has turned the spotlight ton endangered species of animals around the globe.

According to the World Wildlife (WWF), up to17 species of animals are critically endangered (including Amur Leopard, Black Rhino, Sumatran Elephant and Leatherback Turtle); 33 species of animals are endangered (including Asian Elephant, Fin Whale, Bornean Orungutan and Fin Whale); and 15 species of animals are vulnerable (including Red Panda, Polar Bear, Forest Elephant and Olive Ridley Turtle).

Despite the London Declaration combating trade in horn and ivory, poaching of elephants and rhinos is still on the rise,

The International Union for the Conservation of Nature has reported a decrease in the number of African elephant from 550,000 in 2006 to 470,000 in 2013.

"If the current trend of poaching for ivory continues, we might witness the extinction of African elephants within a decade or two," said Dune Ives, senior researcher at Vulcan during the Africa Elephant Summit in Botswana in March."In five years we may have lost the opportunity to save this magnificent and iconic animal...In 2014, 1,215 rhinos were killed in South Africa, 20 percent more killings than a year before."

A month back, burglars raided a police storeroom in Mozambique stocking confiscated rhino horns and ivory. They managed to steal 12 horns valued at about £700,000. In addition, police confiscated 65 rhino horns and 340 tusks of 170 elephants from the house of a Chinese citizen living in Maputo.

"We don't see people going to jail. It's easy to say we're putting more dogs at airports or doing more training, but the international community is only going to get serious about this when we see people going to jail. We need to see a preponderance of prosecutions and sentences handed down that sends a message to the traffickers that it's not worth the risk," said Dr. Patrick Bergin, chief executive of the African Wildlife Foundation.

TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring group, has strongly protested against ivory trading. Ivory is traded from Kenya and Tanzania to transit countries including Vietnam and Philippines, before going on final markets in China and Thailand.

Currently, 70 percent of the global demand for ivory comes from China, which amounts to the killing of 30,000 African elephants yearly.

The Obama administration has announced new regulations for ivory trade in the country with a mission to eliminate ivory sales in the United States in entirely. U.S. ranks second in ivory sales in the world, only after China.

The U.N. has been working toward a resolution to call for action for several years. The resolution passed on Thursday urges states to ratify existing conventions such as the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, the U.N. Convention against Transnational Organized Crime, and the U.N. Convention against Corruption.

TagsKilling Of Lion In Zimbabwe, Illicit Trafficking In Wildlife, Wildlife trafficking, Trade In Horn And Ivory, endangered species