Indiana Jones star in tiger pledge

Indiana Jones star Harrison Ford has backed a new global initiative to save tigers from extinction.

The project will bring together wildlife experts, scientists and governments to try to halt the killing and thriving illegal trade in tiger skins, meat and body parts used in traditional Asian medicines.

Ford, a long-time environmental activist, said efforts to protect tigers would only succeed if local communities were involved in conservation efforts.

He said: "By committing to help wild tigers, the World Bank is sounding its intention to be a global leader in biodiversity conservation."

World Bank President Robert Zoellick said the decline in the number of tigers was "shocking" from over 100,000 a century ago to currently less than 4,000.

The clearing of large areas of forest land for urban development has added to their decline and disappearance from Central Asia, the Indonesian islands of Java and Bali, and most of China.

© Independent Television News Limited 2008. All rights reserved.

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