Serval objects from Nubia in Egyptian art. Like many other species of felid, servals are occasionally kept as pets, although their wild nature means that ownership of servals is regulated in most countries. On 7 April 1986, a healthy hybrid kitten between a male serval and a female domestic cat was born; this kitten was larger than a typical domestic kitten and resembled its father in its coat pattern. It appeared to have inherited a few domestic traits, such as tameness, from its mother. The hybrid cat may have a doglike habit of following its owner about, and can be a
Operation Serval Mali resulted in the deaths of 11 Islamist fighters. On the evening of April 16, 2014, the French army destroyed two pickup trucks containing jihadists north of Timbuktu. They then used air and ground forces to intercept other vehicles. During the night of April 16 to the 17th, the French special forces, backed by troops from Operation Serval and helicopters come in contact with the Islamist fighters. The French began by firing warning shots, but the jihadists refused to surrender and opened fire. Faced with the advance of the French military, they abandoned their vehicles and ran, suffering more losses.