[WORLD NEWS ★]
ZIMBABWE SEEKS CECIL THE LION’S KILLER 
(P1) The US dentist who killed a lion in Zimbabwe should be EXTRADITED to FACE CHARGES, Zimbabwe’s Environment Minister Oppah Muchinguri has said.
(P2) Walter Palmer’s extradition was being SOUGHT so that he could “be held ACCOUNTABLE for his illegal action,” she said.
(P3) The US Fish and WILDLIFE Service was contacted by a representative of Mr Palmer on Thursday.
(P4) The contact comes as US authorities continue to investigate the hunt.
(P5) Mr Palmer, from Minnesota, is believed to have paid about $50,000 to hunt the lion, known as Cecil.
(P6) He says he thought the hunt was legal and was unaware Cecil was protected.
(P7) At a news conference in the capital, Harare, Ms Muchinguri referred to Mr Palmer as a “foreign POACHER“.
(P8) “As we FRANTICALLY try to protect our wildlife from organised gangs such as this one, there are people… who can CONNIVE to UNDERMINE Zimbabwean laws,” she said.
(P9) “One can conclude with confidence that Dr Palmer, being an American citizen, had a well-ORCHESTRATED AGENDA which would TARNISH the image of Zimbabwe and further STRAIN the relationship between Zimbabwe and the USA,” Ms Muchinguri added.
(P10) She also said Mr Palmer’s use of a BOW AND ARROW against Cecil was in CONTRAVENTION of Zimbabwean hunting regulations, Reuters reports.
(P11) Two Zimbabwean men have been IMPLICATED in the death of the lion.
(P12) A professional hunter has been charged with failing to prevent an illegal hunt – which he DENIES – and prosecutors are deciding on the exact charges the landowner should face.
(P13) “I don’t believe I failed in any duties at all, I was engaged by a client to do a hunt for him and we shot an old male lion that I believed was past his breeding age,” the Zimbabwean hunter Theo Bronkhorst told the AFP news agency.
(P14) There has been a huge online BACKLASH against Mr Palmer. The dental practice he runs in Minneapolis has been closed since he was named as the hunter who shot Cecil.
(P15) On Thursday, the White House said it would review a public PETITION to extradite the American dentist after more than 100,000 signed it.
(P16) But spokesman Josh Earnest said it was up to the US Justice Department to respond to any extradition order.
WORDS: 370
SOURCE: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-33733722
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: If you found the passage difficult to read or had problems understanding specific words or idiomatic expressions, please discuss them with your tutor. The following discussion questions should be answered in your own words and with your own arguments.
- Briefly summarize the content of the article in your own words.
- The death of Cecil the lion created a worldwide FUROR. Were there stories about this in the media in your country?
- What is your feeling about the hunting of wild animals?
- Do you believe that the United States will extradite Walter Palmer to Zimbabwe?
- Cecil the lion was an ICON of the nation of Zimbabwe. What are some of the icons of your nation?
EXPRESSIONS TO PRACTICE: What do the following expressions mean? Practice using each expression in a sentence; extra points if you can use it in conversation.
- Face charges
- Bow and arrow
