Tripoli , Libya ( CNN ) -- In a city slashed by war , a tiger fights for life . Osama , a Siberian tiger at the Tripoli Zoo , has been suffering for days . He is on his side , breathing shallowly , his huge paws motionless -- caramel , black-and-white-striped fur covered with flies that he is too weak to brush off . A team of animal-welfare experts from Austria 's Four Paws International gently rolls the tiger over and Dr. Amir Khalil , dripping sweat , searches for a vein , then puts in an IV drip to give the animal vitamins . Asked why the tiger is so sick , the veterinarian replies , `` Honestly , we do n't know but I believe he 's old , 21 years . That 's number one . Number two , it was a lot of stress in the surroundings here . '' During the struggle for Tripoli , gunfire raged just outside the zoo . When the fighting was at its height some Libyans packed up their cars and fled . The animals at the Tripoli Zoo did n't have that option . The deafening sounds of shooting , the acrid smell of battle -- there was no respite for these sensitive creatures . Shells still litter the zoo grounds . As the zoo 's director , Dr. Abdulfatah Husni , leads a CNN crew to the mammal house , he points out bullet casings on the sidewalk . `` This is for Kalashnikov . You know Kalashnikov ? '' he asks , referring to automatic rifles . In the mammal house , the roof is marred by a a gaping hole blasted by a rocket propelled grenade . Luckily , no animal died or was injured . For two weeks there was no water in much of Tripoli . For the hippos at the zoo , it was a disaster . The huge , stolid animals stand forlornly by their almost-empty pool , now slowly being filled with water from a large hose . Husni says that during the worst of it , the animals had to drink whatever water remained but they could not swim , as they usually do . The staff had to sprinkle them with what water remained to keep their tough skins moist . `` They 're shiny now , '' he says . Even as fighters shot it out on the streets near the zoo , 15 members of the staff came in every day to feed and water the animals , risking their own lives ; if they had n't , many of the animals would have died within three to four days , Husni says . In the tiger house , meanwhile , the animal rescue team still struggles to save Osama the tiger . Dr. Khalil rushed here from Vienna to help after seeing CNN reports about the fate of these animals . He grows more quiet as his efforts seem to have little effect . `` He 's finished , '' he finally whispers , acknowledging that the tiger has died . `` It was too late . '' The Tripoli Zoo , originally opened in 1986 , was under major reconstruction when the revolution broke out . Without the fighting , it was scheduled to be completed in May . But the South Korean construction company working on the project pulled out because of security concerns , Husni says . He hopes the project will continue and says the new anti-Gadhafi transitional leaders pledge to give the zoo support . There will be exchanges with zoos around the world , he says , something that stopped during the Gadhafi regime . He will be able to attend conferences around the world , to learn new techniques of protecting animals in captivity . And , he predicts , the zoo will welcome new animals unscarred by war .
Animal experts from Austria saw CNN reports on the Tripoli Zoo and rushed to help . Animals at the zoo suffered as gun battles raged in the streets . The zoo 's director and Libya 's new president pledge to give the zoo support . But for the tiger , the fight for survival is lost .