The Believe singer will celebrate the departure of Kaavan the elephant from the Pakistani zoo he has lived in for 35 years. For years, animal rights activists have lobbied for Kaavan to be released, with the elephant having been diagnosed as both overweight and malnourished earlier this year. His partner died in 2012, leading campaigners to dub him the “world’s loneliest elephant”. Outrage over the treatment of Kaavan at the capital’s zoo went global several years ago with a petition garnering more than 200,000 signatures after it emerged he was being chained up. The Islamabad High Court ordered wildlife officials to consult with Sri Lanka, where the Asian elephant came from, to find him a “suitable sanctuary” within 30 days. Cher, who is the co-founder of organisation Free the Wild, has been a vocal advocate for his resettlement and this week secretly travelled to Pakistan to wave Kaavan off as he is moved to a sanctuary in Cambodia. A documentary about the singer’s trip to Pakistan is in the works, with Cher saying that she was “so proud” to be involved in his release.