Mehmet Onal, 58, rescued an injured baby squirrel four years ago and nursed it back to health (Mehmet Onal / SWNS)
Four years ago in a Sussex churchyard, kebab shop owner Mehmet Onal, 58, found a baby squirrel with a broken leg.
Now, the two are inseparable and share Oreos, shopping trips, and what Mr Onal calls ‘unconditional love… loyalty and respect’.
Onal found the baby squirrel in Hailsham, near Hastings, in 2021. When an animal rescue could not help, he decided to nurse him back to health himself.
He said: ‘I take him to the vet and she said that by law they had to put them down.’
Onal said he and the squirrel, Alvin, share ‘unconditional love’ (Mehmet Onal/SWNS)
For eight weeks Mehmet cared for the squirrel, later named Alvin, giving him hydrotherapy until he recovered.
When Alvin was well again, Mehmet returned to the churchyard to release him, but the animal kept coming back.
‘He came running at me like a bullet,’ he said.
‘It was emotional. The way he came to him. He didn’t want to go.’
Since then, Alvin has lived with Mehmet and the pair have become best friends.
‘But some people call him a vermin because he is a grey squirrel. He is my boy. I start crying.
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There are three certainties in life – death, taxes, and Donald Trump laying in to Joe Biden.
He’s labelled his predecessor ‘Sleepy Joe’, mocked his age, and has taken aim at his stuttering speeches.
Now Trump’s pushed his trolling up a notch by replacing Biden’s portrait in the White House’s new Presidential Walk of Fame with an image of an autopen.
Yes, you read that right. Biden, the 46th president, is nowhere to be found.
The only trace is just a gold frame around his signature sat between two scouring images of Trump.
Donald Trump admiring his trolling in the White House’s new presidential walk of fame (Picture: The White House)
The autopen nods to Don’s claims the then-president would use an automatic tool to sign key documents – one the Biden administration denied.
In June, Trump ordered an investigation into the alleged use of autopen during Biden’s time as president.
The low blow has been slammed online as disrespectful and unprofessional – terms Trump has been called many times before.
Another added: ‘Joe Biden served honorably as President of the United States. Replacing his portrait with an autopen is petty and disrespectful.’
‘Biden defeated Donald five years ago and Donny still can’t stop crying. He’s fighting Biden with pictures. That’s how weak and childish Trump is. No wonder Putin and the world has no respect for him,’ one observed.
In the past Trump has accused Biden’s aides of using autopen to control the Democrat into signing orders enacting open borders and transgender rights, policies Trump claims Biden didn’t actually support.
‘He didn’t have much of an idea what was going on. He shouldn’t be … I mean, essentially, whoever used the autopen was the president. And that is wrong. It’s illegal, it’s so bad and then it’s so disrespectful to our country,” Trump said.
But Trump himself has admitted using the autopen ‘for very unimportant papers.’
When pressed the US President specifically cited responding to people’s letters using the tool.
Locals in a California city are on edge after a series of animal attacks.
The perpetrator, however, isn’t the sea lions, sharks or mountain lions you might expect in that part of the world.
Instead, the violent attacker is an aggressive squirrel.
Residents of San Rafael, about 20 miles north of San Francisco, have started placing posters and issuing warnings online about the aggressive animal, which has sent two people to hospital with their injuries.
They’ve been warned that at least five people have been attacked by a ‘very mean squirrel’ that ‘comes out of nowhere’.
The poster, featuring a picture of a squirrel mid-leap, also insists that the warnings are ‘not a joke’.
Posters have been put up near the scene of the squirrel attacks (Picture: AP)
Joan Heblack told local media that she was walking down the street when the creature came out of nowhere, attacking her leg.
She said: ‘It clamped onto my leg. The tail was flying up here. I was like, “Get it off me, get off me!”.’
Isabel Campoy was walking in the Lucas Valley neighbourhood, the same area as Joan, when she was also attacked by the squirrel.
It launched itself from the ground towards her face and latched onto her arm, she said, leaving her bleeding.
A local humane society said they haven’t had any reports of squirrel attacks since mid-September.
Lisa Bloch, a volunteer at Marin Humane, said it will work with the state to remove the animal if it starts attacking people again.
She warned: ‘We’ve seen this kind of behavior before. It’s almost always because someone has been feeding the animal.’
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Lisa also said squirrels very rarely get rabies and haven’t been known to transmit it, reassuring that those bitten are not at risk of catching the deadly viral infection.
But despite this, she recommends that people should never feed wildlife – lest they get hungry and come to seek out their next meal themselves.
A teaching assistant has appeared in court after using a spray so foul-smelling that students needed medical treatment, it’s been reported.
Alexander Lewis, a teaching assistant at West Florence High School in South Carolina, used a spray he bought online that mimics the smell of faeces.
Court documents claim Lewis used the spray repeatedly between August 25 and September 19 which caused disruption to classes, impacted the school’s air system, and sent students to the nurse with respiratory issues.
His actions reportedly cost the school about $55,000 (£40,000) for multiple inspections and repairs to its air conditioning system.
Students and staff suffered headaches, nausea and dizziness due to the foul stench.
He was arrested after school CCTV caught him walking through the school’s breezeway with an object in his hand, spraying something before slipping the item into his pocket.
Alexander Lewis was arrested after apparently being caught on CCTV (Picture: FCSO)
Lewis has denied responsibility, saying he was spraying a lemon-scented hand sanitiser – with police finding that sanitiser when searching his car.
After the search Lewis, 32, was arrested on the charges of malicious injury to property exceeding $10,000 and disturbing schools as a non-student, ABC News reports.
Authorities indicated further charges are possible.
Last month Florence County reassured parents that the school’s gas lines, propane systems and air quality were running safely and as normal, Local12 reports.
One parent said: ‘My son’s asthma has been triggered multiple times because of this and I had to take him to the doctor three times.’
An impression of the resurrected Jesus Christ ascending to heaven. No pets pictured (Picture: Getty Images)
‘Will we see our pets in Heaven?’ is a difficult question parents have attempted to answer since the birth of Christianity.
But in 2025 American TikTokers are genuinely afraid their pets won’t make it to the promised land after a South African pastor warned that the Rapture will happen today.
Pastor Joshua Mhlakela has warned that Jesus will return on September 23 ‘whether you are ready or not’.
The pastor’s prediction has prompted ‘RaptureTok’ – a wave of religious hysteria now sweeping through TikTok.
Chief among believers’ concerns appears to be their pets’ souls, with many asking: ‘Will our pets be raptured?’
Pastor Joshua Mhlakela has warned that Jesus will return on September 23 ‘whether you are ready or not’ (Picture: Shutterstock / Benjamin Haas)
Cloudy afternoon light shines on a sign signalling preparation for the rapture (Picture: Shutterstock)
The Rapture is the belief that Christian believers will one day ascend to heaven. Those left behind will endure seven years of suffering, war and devastation led by the Antichrist.
One widely-shared TikTok video shows a woman quoting the Bible as evidence that people’s dogs, hamsters and parrots will be raptured.
‘I ask God all the time to please take my dogs when we’re raptured,’ someone wrote in the comment section of one video.
‘I have prayed for my fur babies to be raptured with me,’ agreed another.
Some, however, are poking fun at the trend. One person posted a sketch showing him hoisting his dog up in preparation for salvation.
Another video shows a woman sharing her tips for ensuring you’re among God’s chosen people. They include ‘be saved’ and ‘complete GTA V’.
Pastor Mhlakela’s announced his prophecy on a YouTube podcast that has since received almost 550,000 views.
He claimed Jesus came to him in a vision and confirmed that September 23 would be the date of his coming.
The video has been taken up by some Christians in the US, where approximately 23 to 26% of people identify as Evangelical Protestants, according to Pew Research Centre.
The victims showed symptoms consistent with Shigella infection, including diarrhea, fever, and abdominal cramps (Picture: Getty Images)
As many as 55 people – most of them schoolchildren – have fallen ill after eating falafel contaminated with human waste.
The incident happened in a restaurant in the town of Irbid, in Jordan, which which was then shut down ‘within hours’.
Early findings released by the Jordan Food and Drug Administration (JFDA) confirmed the presence of poo in samples of the food that was served.
Both E. coli and Shigella – highly infectious bacteria that can cause severe gastrointestinal illness – were detected in the meals.
Dr Ayman Maqableh, the director of epidemiology at the ministry of health, said at least 42 students had sought medical care in hospitals and clinics last week,
Eight have been admitted for treatment, with three remaining under close observation, Gulf News reported.
The victims, aged between six and 14, showed symptoms consistent with Shigella infection, including diarrhea, fever, and abdominal cramps.
Health officials also confirmed that one of the restaurant’s workers tested positive for the same bacterium, raising the likelihood that he may have been a source of the outbreak.
The restaurant, which was licensed to prepare baked goods, had reportedly been closed by its original owner.
It was then rented to a local schoolteacher.
Without notifying regulators, he began serving falafel meals to students at two nearby schools.
The Jordanian ministry of health stressed that the situation was ‘under control’ and that treatment and monitoring protocols had been activated.
Strongs store owner Andrew Simpkins, 61, with the durian fruit that caused an emergency gas callout (Picture: William Lailey/SWNS)
An engineer was dispatched to a town centre gas leak emergency that turned out to be a green grocer’s very smelly fruit.
The worker, from Cadent gas company, visited a number of shop in Lytham, Lancashire, to test for gas after a shopper reported a strong smell of the toxic substance.
How once they reached Strongs Fruit and Veg shop staff informed them that the odour was actually durian, known as the smelliest fruit in the world.
Store assistants Wai Peng Cheng, 51, and his partner Candy Pooi Kuan Lam, 46, had not been aware of the emergency callout and had ‘no idea’ what was going on when they spotted the engineer with his testing equipment.
Wai Peng said: ‘We saw a gas engineer pull up in front of the shop at around 1pm and he went into the charity shop next door.
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‘About an hour later he tried the body care shop on the other side before coming inside Strongs.
‘He said he was looking for a gas leak and that the charity shop next store had reported it after a customer told them about the strong gassy smell.’
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Mr Cheng told the engineer the smell was caused by the the durian fruit, but initially be didn’t believe him.
‘It was only when I took him outside and gave one to him that he realised,’ he added.
‘We all just started laughing it was hilarious – he then checked if there was any gas leak outside just to be sure, but of course there wasn’t, before leaving at 4pm.’
Durian fruits are a popular delicacy found predominantly in Southeast Asia.
They have a powerful, pungent rotting onion smell and have even been known to be banned from being carried inside hotels and public transport in parts of Asia.
The gas engineer at green grocer’s in Lytham (Picture: Andrew Simpkins/SWNS)
Wai Peng and Candy had been on holiday to Malaysia and when they returned to the UK earlier this month they asked Strongs store owner Andrew Simpkins, 61, if they could stock the fruit, to which he agreed.
The store received a delivery of the fruit last week and they put it on display later that day, hours before the incident happened.
They sell the fruit for £22 per 500g.
Andrew said: ‘I knew it smelled bad but I didn’t think it would bring the gas board out.
‘They told me there were some police officers there too.
Durian is sold at Strongs for £22 per 500g pack (Picture: William Lailey / SWNS)
‘We only bought a small box full this week but they have flown of the shelf.
‘I tried some for the first time – I was sceptical at first but it has a pleasant aftertaste.’
Phil Hendrick, head of operational delivery (north west) at Cadent, said: ‘One of our engineers responded to a report of a gas smell inside a building.
‘As part of his routine checks, he visited adjoining properties – including a fruit and veg shop – and found no trace of gas in any of the buildings.
‘As the gas emergency response service, we attend thousands of reported smells of gas every year.
‘Thankfully, most turn out not to be gas-related.’
Store assistant Wai Peng Cheng says the engineer initially didn’t believe the smell was a fruit (Picture: William Lailey / SWNS)
He said that over the years, the company has traced reported smells to a variety of sources – from factory discharges and aviation fuel, to dockside activities and, on occasion, durian fruit.
He added: ‘If you ever smell gas, calling it in is always the right thing to do, every time. Don’t take chances. Act immediately and ring the National Gas Emergency Service on 0800 111 999, day or night.
‘Our engineers carry sensitive equipment that can detect even the smallest traces of gas.
‘Whether it turns out to be gas, or just a smelly fruit, it’s always better to be safe than sorry.’
Cadent operates the gas emergency service for four of the UK’s eight gas distribution network areas.
The bear was euthanised after repeatedly wandering into the store and attacking a woman and a dog (Picture: Instagram/thegardenstate)
An elderly woman has been taken to hospital after a wandering bear attacked her while she was shopping.
The animal entered the Dollar General store in Vernon, New Jersey last Tuesday, and was chased out by police who shot it with rubber pellets.
Two hours later it returned, attacking the dog of a neighbouring restaurant owner before re-entering the convenience store.
It proceeded to stalk the aisles, occasionally lunging at shoppers and pets.
Footage filmed by a local man as he tried to lure the 175lb (80kg) female out of the store shows her pacing sluggishly as though she may be sick.
The man is heard saying to the bear: ‘What’s up, buddy? You are one big, nasty motherf***er.
Sorry, this video isn't available any more.
As she gets closer to him, he nervously says: ‘Where the f*** is the door?’
By this point the bear had already attacked a 90-year-old woman by either scratching or biting her leg, local police say.
A worker at a neighbouring business told The New York Times the woman appeared unfazed by the incident.
After being warned there was a bear in the store, the woman reportedly said ‘I know, he swiped at me’ and kept shopping.
She was hospitalised with non-severe injuries.
The bear’s behaviour raised fears it may have been sick
The dog was uninjured, its owner saying the bear had tackled the German Shepherd without biting or scratching it.
The bear had already been sighted in the area hours before entering the store.
After the incident in the store it was tracked to a nearby parking lot where officers determined that it needed to be euthanised.
State authorities collected the carcass to test it for rabies.
Authorities in Sussex County, where Vernon is located, counted 294 bear-related incidents this year as of last month, by far the highest of any county in the state.
Starr Luxury Cars boss Ike Ordor said the luxury car rental business has radically changed in the past decade (Picture: Starr Luxury Cars)
Clout-starved influencers are hiring people to drive them around in £500,000 supercars before hiding to look like they can drive, a rental boss has revealed.
The shameless social media wannabes now outnumber genuine motorists at luxury car hire firms, where engines have become ‘secondary to the engagement’.
Bosses say many of the flashy motors, from Lamborghinis to Rolls-Royces, are not hired to be driven at all, but used as stage props to impress followers online.
Some clients, often young entrepreneurs who made fast money in crypto, gaming or modelling, even demand cars are parked outside swanky Mayfair hotels so they can film themselves ‘arriving’ for a night of luxury partying.
Starr Luxury Cars boss Ike Ordor said his industry has been ‘transformed’ by social media.
Speaking to Metro, he said: ‘A decade ago I was helping petrolheads live out their motoring fantasies.
‘Our customers used to love the thrill of driving cars they could never afford. Today it’s photo power, not horsepower.’
Some influencers will rent the cars then get them dropped off at plush hotels just to have photos taken with them, Ike revealed (Picture: Starr Luxury Cars)
He revealed one influencer changed outfits three times in the back seat between stops, so their content looked like it had been taken on different days.
Another even asked staff to park a Ferrari outside a Mayfair hotel, leave the keys and vanish, so they could swagger in on camera as if it was their own.
‘The theatre of luxury is sometimes just as valuable as the thrill of driving it,’ Ike explained.
The car hire boss also says his customer base has changed dramatically.
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Once, loud Lamborghinis that screamed ‘look at me’ were in demand.
Now influencers are chasing ‘quiet luxury’, sleek, understated models that project a cooler kind of confidence, he explained.
‘Instagram has transformed my industry,’ he said. ‘A decade ago, people rented supercars to experience the drive. Now, half the time, it’s just to experience the moment.
Some influencers are so uninterested in driving the cars they haven’t even started their engines, Ike revealed (Picture: Starr Luxury Cars)
‘Social media has turned the steering wheel into a stage prop, and our cars into characters in their brand story.’
He explained that younger clients are often less interested in the car’s horsepower and more focused on clout.
A carefully posed shot pulling up outside an exclusive London club can rack up thousands of likes, while a short clip filmed behind the wheel can convince followers they are living the dream lifestyle.
‘We’ve had 21-year-olds renting cars they can’t even insure for a weekend, only to spend hours crawling around London’s hotspots with photographers in tow,’ he added.
‘For them, the engine is secondary to the engagement.’
Users must watch an advert or pay to access toilet roll in some Chinese public bathrooms (Picture: Reddit/Youtube)
Paying to use a public bathroom isn’t a new concept, with plenty of countries charging an entrance fee to allow people to – literally – spend a penny.
But these public toilets in China have taken the concept to new heights.
In a move described as ‘dystopian’ by the anti-consumption subreddit, some public bathrooms in China are forcing users to watch an advert in order to gain access to toilet paper.
A video shared by China Insider showed a person scanning a QR code on the loo roll dispenser and watching a short advert, before a few squares of paper are dispensed.
If that’s not enough paper, or if you don’t want to watch an advert, you can pay 0.5 RMB – about 5p – to skip the ads.
It’s been claimed the system cuts down on waste, with authorities suggesting some people had been taking excessive amounts of free toilet paper.
But the move has been heavily criticised, with many suggesting they would simply choose to carry their own tissues in case they needed to use a public bathroom in China.
Plus, there are the potential hygiene issues if someone needs to use the bathroom but their phone has run out of battery, or they don’t have any spare change.
This isn’t the first time China has restricted toilet paper use in its public bathrooms.
Back in 2017, public loos at the Temple of Heaven park in Beijing installed toilet roll dispensers with facial recognition software built in.
Authorities claimed the attraction is regularly visited by people who stuff their bags with loo roll and take it home with them.
The new machines dispensed a strip of toilet roll measuring about 60cm in length, and would not dispense any more to the same person until nine minutes passed.
But the park was forced to clarify that if someone had diarrhoea or another urgent need for loo roll, a staff member would provide it directly to them – which wouldn’t be mortifyingly embarrassing at all.
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