A lioness with her cubs that was rescued from a war-torn Ukrainian zoo could be rehomed in the UK.

At the start of Russia’s invasion, a female lion named Aysa was abandoned at a private zoo in the Donetsk region while pregnant.

When she gave birth to Teddi, Emi and Santa, she was moved to another facility in Ukraine.

According to Yorkshire Wildlife Park, the lions will be moved to the UK before Christmas if the park can obtain permission.

Currently, all four are at Poznan Zoo in Poland, where they have been temporarily rehomed.

At the time of her rescue from a Ukrainian private zoo, Aysa was pregnant

Wildlife park officials near Doncaster, South Yorkshire, said they wanted to give the lions “a better life and a brighter future”.

This month, the park announced the death of the 14-year-old lion Simba due to age-related health problems.

In February 2010, Simba was among 13 lions rescued from Oradea Zoo in Romania after they were found living in concrete-floored cages.

In order to assess Aysa and her family and plan the move to Yorkshire, Colin Northcott, Deputy Section Head of Carnivores, travelled to Poland.

Over the course of his visit, Mr Northcott gradually gained the trust of the lions who were initially “frightened and distressed.”

“Lion Country here at Yorkshire Wildlife Park was built as a welfare facility, and now we’re in a position to give these poor lions a home and hope that we can make a difference to their lives”.