Cecil the lion: Walter Palmer returns to work as dentist
The US dentist who generated an outcry after killing a lion called Cecil in Zimbabwe has returned to his dental practice after weeks in hiding. Walter Palmer arrived at work in the morning, where a throng of media and a few protesters awaited him.
Police were present as the dentist parked his vehicle on a nearby street and walked into his office. A staff member clutched his arm as the pair pushed past a group of journalists. Later, employees escorted patients into the surgery, as photographers swarmed the office.
Walter Palmer, seen here with an African wild boar that he hunted
In an interview with a local newspaper, Palmer said,
“I need to get back to treating my patients. My staff and my patients support me, and they want me back. That’s why I’m back.”
The dental offices of Walter Palmer
The killing of Cecil in July prompted a global uproar, which Palmer has claimed led to "some safety issues" for his family. His clinic and his home in nearby Eden Prairie became the site of protests, and his holiday home in Florida was vandalised.
Game at a vlei, or seasonal wetland, in Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe
The dentist is believed to have paid $50,000 to hunt a lion in Zimbabwe's largest game reserve, but he has said he was unaware it was so famous. Cecil was well known in the Hwange National Park and was being tracked with a GPS collar as part of a research programme run by Oxford University.
Sunset over Hwange National Park
The Zimbabwe's safari organisation has said the way in which Cecil was lured out of a national park was unethical and possibly illegal. Initially, Zimbabwe sought to charge and extradite Palmer, but the government's interest in him has waned in recent weeks. It appears that government officials fear it could hamper a hunting industry that is lucrative and important for the country.
(All images - credit: Wikimedia Commons under Creative Commons licence)
