Six elephants were killed last week in Tsavo National Park, in Kenya. Four of them were still calves, one of which had not yet grown tusks. Three people suspected of committing the crime have been arrested.

The Tsavo incident confirms once again, if confirmation were needed, the gratuitous and unacceptable violence of illegal poaching, which is causing an exponential rise in animal killings across the African continent, driven above all by growing demand for ivory in China and south-east Asian countries. In Kenya alone, more than 60 elephants have already been killed since the start of the year.

The six elephants were shot dead by three suspected poachers arrested on Saturday 26 April by Kenya Wildlife Service rangers. Ivory has reached a valuation of $2,000 per kilogram on the black market. This is the primary cause behind the staggering figure — 22,000 — of African elephants killed in 2012. According to an aerial census conducted this year, Tsavo park is home to around 11,000 elephants.