ABBOTTABAD: A schoolboy was injured after a snow leopard attacked him near Nathiagali here on Monday.

Siddiqur Rehman, a fourth grader, suffered neck and face injuries in the attack, which occurred when he was on the way to school.

The predator tried to whisk him away but abandoned him after villagers fired gunshots in the air to scare him away.

The villagers said the leopard might have come down from the high mountains to the population in search of food.

The injured boy was taken to the District Headquarters Hospital Abbottabad, where his condition was stated to be stable.

A relevant doctor at the hospital, Waqar, said the schoolchild had suffered bruises in neck, face and left leg, while one of his fingers was eaten by the leopard.

Published in Dawn, April 26th, 2016