An orangutan has escaped at an Israeli zoo after using a newly planted tree in its enclosure that was damaged by Palestinian rockets, and it had to be tranquilised and returned to its cage.

The redesign of the orangutans’ enclosure was necessary after it was damaged by one of the 131 rockets that were fired at Tel Aviv where the zoo is located by Palestinian militants in May.

The crafty ape then took advantage of the redesigned enclosure where a new tree had been put a little bit too close to the fence to escape from its enclosure at the Ramat Gan Safari in the city of Ramat Gan in the Israeli district of Tel Aviv at the weekend.

The 12-year-old orangutan called Tana escaped from the enclosure then had the free range of the grounds before finally deciding to climb yet another tree when keepers closed in on her.

The tree was situated near the staff compound and workers tried to coax Tana down with treats.

After refusing the zookeepers’ offers of food, Tana was shot with a tranquiliser dart with a low dosage of sedative and brought down from the tree safely without incident.

A safari park spokesperson said the orangutan used the tree recently added to its enclosure last week to escape.

The spokesperson added: “Carers and vets worked professionally and gently and ensured at all times that her condition was good.”

The safari park added: “It’s important to note the location is not close to visitor areas and there was no danger.”

The enclosure was rebuilt after being hit and damaged by a rocket fired by Palestinian militants in May.