Author: Darren Smith

A critically endangered western lowland gorilla has given birth to a baby boy via caesarean section at Seattle’s Woodland Park Zoo, in only the twelfth such procedure ever performed on the species and the first in the zoo’s 126-year history. Olympia, a 29-year-old gorilla weighing around 90kg, delivered the 5.4lb infant last month with the help of a combined team of human medical specialists and zoo veterinarians. The birth followed weeks of monitoring by Dr Sachita Shah, an emergency medicine physician who typically treats human patients, who had been visiting the zoo every Tuesday with portable ultrasound equipment to track…

Royal Marines have boarded a Russian “shadow fleet” oil tanker in a dramatic overnight operation in the English Channel, in the first such interception since the government granted the armed forces powers to seize sanctioned vessels in UK waters earlier this year. Forces used helicopters to take control of the tanker, named the Smyrtos, in the early hours of Sunday morning. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer confirmed the operation on X, writing: “In the early hours of this morning, I directed our Armed Forces to intercept a shadow fleet oil tanker attempting to pass through the English Channel. This successful…

One of America’s largest Christian foster care and adoption agencies has announced it will no longer license or re-license LGBTQ couples as foster families, in a move it says reflects a renewed commitment to its religious foundations rather than a new policy direction. Bethany Christian Services, a faith-based non-profit headquartered in Grand Rapids, Michigan, confirmed the change in a press release on Wednesday, stating that all future and existing foster families will be required to align with the organisation’s Statement of Faith and Belief from June 2027. Founded in 1944, the organisation operates across more than 25 US states and…

A woman who says she was drugged and raped while held in police custody more than five years ago has accused Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham of failing to deliver on promises made after she went public with her allegations, as she continues to fight for access to missing CCTV footage from the night in question. Zayna Iman, 41, who has waived her right to anonymity, says she was given a substance, stripped and sexually assaulted before being left naked and distressed on the floor of a cell at Pendleton police station in February 2021, during the second Covid lockdown.…

More than 100,000 people whose asylum claims were rejected between 2010 and 2024 have not been recorded as leaving Britain, according to new analysis from the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford, reigniting debate over the government’s ability to enforce removals. The analysis found that 108,022 people refused protection over the period have no record of departure. Around 26,850 of those whose claims were rejected between 2010 and 2016 have remained in the country for at least a decade since first applying. Among those who first sought asylum in 2010, around 2,000 individuals — roughly one in four whose…

Scotland will not be wearing their famous navy home strip in their World Cup opener against Haiti, due to a kit clash created by an obscure FIFA rule governing goalkeeper colours. As the designated home side, Haiti are entitled to wear their white home strip, with their goalkeeper choosing yellow. That decision sets off a chain reaction dictating what Scotland are permitted to wear. With Haiti’s goalkeeper in yellow, Scotland’s goalkeeper must wear blue — which in turn rules out the Scotland outfield players from wearing their own blue kit, despite there being no direct colour clash between the two…

A 21-year-old woman has died after being thrown from a 40-metre bridge during a bungee-style “rope jump” in Brazil, after the company running the activity failed to attach her safety harness, with six people connected to the operation detained by police. The victim, Maria Eduarda Rodrigues de Freitas, from Jandira in greater São Paulo, was taking part in the jump at the Ponte do Esqueleto, or Skeleton Bridge, trail in Limeira on Saturday morning. According to Britannia Daily sources , instructors carried her to the platform and launched her from the bridge without the rope that should have secured her.…

Gary Neville has accused FIFA of behaving like a “dictatorship” after a controversial penalty was awarded to Switzerland during their World Cup match against Qatar, with the governing body failing to publish footage to justify the decision despite boasting of advanced offside technology at the tournament. Switzerland were awarded the spot-kick after Remo Freuler, running onto a header played into his path by Breel Embolo, was brought down by Qatar goalkeeper Mahmoud Abunada at San Francisco Bay Area Stadium. Footage of the incident appeared to show Freuler in an offside position before the goalkeeper made contact, but VAR reviewed the…

An Alaskan woman has described how she shot a bear three times to save her dog after it was mauled during a mushroom foraging trip near Skilak Lake, in an encounter that left the animal badly injured but alive. Lori Price, of Cooper Landing, was out with her two dogs, Willis and Chaos, on Sunday when she heard Chaos yelp and immediately realised what was happening. “I heard the yip, and I heard the bear, and I registered what was going on,” she told KTUU. “My sudden reaction was, I got to get to my dog, and I got to…

A contractor working at Network Rail stations has sparked an investigation after posting a TikTok guide ranking London train stations by how easy they are to dodge fares at, boasting to his 112,000 followers that he had “bumped” 538 stations without ever being caught. The 26-year-old, who goes by the username @itsdatguyfromends and is known online as LB, filmed himself wearing a jacket bearing a Network Rail badge while presenting his guide. “I work at train stations so know how security works,” he said, using slang for fare evasion to claim: “I’ve bumped 538 stations with no penalties so trust…