Baby gorilla recovering after rescue from hold of Turkish Airlines plane

A baby gorilla rescued from the cargo hold of a Turkish Airlines plane is recovering at an Istanbul zoo and may be returned to his natural habitat, officials have said. The five-month old gorilla, named Zeytin, or Olive, after a public competition, was discovered in a box at Istanbul Airport during a customs check while he was being flown illegally from Nigeria to Thailand. He was subsequently taken to Polonezkoy Zoo, just outside the city, to recover from the traumatic journey. "Of course, what we want and desire is for the baby gorilla... to continue its life in its homeland," Fahrettin Ulu, regional director of Istanbul Nature Conservation and National Parks, said on Sunday. Istanbul has become a major air hub between continents at a time when customs officials are regularly intercepting illegally traded animals.<br/>