In a shocking incident, a trophy hunter approached a herd of elephants in Namibia and shot one of them at close range. However, the elephants' response was unexpected and intense.

A disturbing video capturing this encounter has gone viral. It shows two hunters attempting to confront the elephants, but their actions take a dangerous turn.

The elephants, clearly displeased with the situation, launch a fierce counterattack. The video is both astonishing and unsettling.

The hunters can be seen taking aim at the elephants in a disturbing scene. One of them instructs, "Hit it between the eyes," before they start firing.

At least one shot strikes an elephant bull, causing it to collapse. In response to this shocking sight, the rest of the elephant herd swiftly and aggressively charges at the hunters.

The distressing incident was originally recorded several years ago but has resurfaced on social media in recent times. Corné Kruger, a resident of Namibia who is involved in big-game hunting, discussed this situation back in 2018. He emphasized the sensitivity surrounding elephant hunting in Namibia and underscored that the act was carried out legally and responsibly.

"There is a small quota of elephants in the area and we only hunt two elephants a year," he shared.

Kruger also asserted that hunting had economic benefits for the region, offering employment opportunities to local residents.

"We employ 12 people from the community, some of them as game guards," he explained.

"The funds go to conservation and fund anti-poaching units."

By the way, Born Free, a charity dedicated to animal welfare and conservation, strongly opposes 'trophy hunting.'

In response to the video, Born Free's President and Co-Founder, Will Travers, stated: "To try and classify this kind of shameful violence as 'sport', or to claim it has anything to do with wildlife conservation, is completely without justification."

"Trophy hunting, the killing of wild animals for 'fun' by a small, wealthy elite, is increasingly rejected by the great majority of caring individuals."

"It deprives the world of some of its most iconic animals by a tiny number of people who have lost their moral compass.

"I fail to see any skill, courage, achievement, excitement, enjoyment or purpose in these activities, and the fact that predominantly wealthy westerners choose to spend their money in this way by killing innocent animals, and ruining the lives of countless more, profoundly saddens me."

"Trophy hunting is an outdated relic of a colonial-era obsession for killing wildlife for sport. It has no place in modern society, and certainly no role to play in any compassionate conservation programme," he added.

"Wildlife managers need to recognise that every animal counts, and to find ways of funding conservation that do not involve more killing."

"If trophy hunters truly wished to support conservation they would put down the gun and join those of us working to find real, responsible and sustainable, compassionate solutions to our conservation challenges."

In just Kruger National Park in South Africa, 58 elephants fell victim to poaching from January 1 to August 31, 2018.

The World Wide Fund for Nature reports that the population of African elephants in the wild is approximately 415,000, and their numbers have been dwindling significantly due to the global ivory trade.