No one knew Cecil the lion’s name, says hunter

The US dentist whose killing of Cecil the lion in Zimbabwe fuelled a global backlash has emerged for an interview in which he disputed some accounts of the hunt.

Walter Palmer also expressed agitation at the animosity directed at those close to him and said he will returning to work today at his Minneapolis dental practice.

The interview was conducted jointly by The Associated Press and the Minneapolis Star Tribune and advisers said it would be the only one granted.