A lioness has been spotted prowling the streets of Berlin this morning - with officials warning residents to stay inside.
Police in Brandenburg state, which surrounds the capital, issued a warning in the early hours of Thursday of an "escaped wild animal" and asked people not to leave their houses and to bring their pets indoors.
The warning was later extended to southern areas of Berlin and an alert was sent on an official warning app that the animal was suspected to be a lioness. Vets and hunters were participating in a search for the creature.
An image of one of the men brandishing a hunting rifle loaded with tranquiliser ammunition appeared to confirm the reports.
A helicopter and thermal imaging camera were used in the search and the fire brigade has also been involved.
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After advising locals to stay inside, a police spokesperson this morning said: ""We have deployed massive forces at the site to protect the population."
A helicopter and thermal imaging camera were used in the search and the fire brigade has also been involved.
Police had no immediate information on who owned it.
Residents in and around Kleinmachnow, Teltow and Stahnsdorf - just outside Berlin's city limits - were among those advised to stay inside.
Hunters were among the search team (Sven K'uler/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images)Police later added: "We are currently working on the assumption that the animal is a lioness.
"We also got video material about it. It is therefore a lioness. There is currently no reason for us to doubt its authenticity."
Despite the huge operation, investigators are clueless as to where the lion originally escaped from.
Two men also said they saw the big cat chasing after a boar (@BNONews/Twitter)
Vets and hunters are involved in tracking down the creature (@BNONews/Twitter)It comes after another two men reported seeing a big cat running after a wild boar, the latter common in and around Berlin, police spokesman Daniel Kiep told local public broadcaster rbb.
"The two gentlemen recorded a smartphone video and even experienced police officers had to confirm that it is probably a lioness," he said, adding that there were various reported sightings.
Neither of Berlin's two zoos nor any circuses were missing a lioness, he added.
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(Fabian Sommer/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images)Veterinarian Fred Willizkat told the German daily, Bild, that the lion is an "unpredictable" animal, which may lash out at anything it "doesn't know and that scares it".
One of the locked down areas, the municipality of Kleinmachnow on the southern outskirts of the city, has opted to keep public spaces open including schools and daycare centres - but kids are being told they must stay inside.
A town spokeswoman said market traders are being told to not set up any stalls, adding that most people had got the message because "there are hardly any people there".
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