The Know Daily - Thursday 24 August 2023

_{Thursday 24 August ∙ Read in 5m 24s ∙ Listening to Gabriels}

Rare hybrid dolphins - a cross between the common dolphin and the striped dolphin - have been spotted off the coast of Cornwall, in what is believed to be a UK first. The Sea Watch Foundation said it hopes the sighting will raise more awareness of dolphins in UK waters and the threats they currently face - which certainly would be fin-tastic for the species! 🐬

🇷🇺 The Prigozhin plane crash

Yevgeny Prigozhin, who led a failed uprising against Vladimir Putin two months ago, was on board a plane that crashed in western Russia on Wednesday, authorities have said.

What happened yesterday?
Russian aviation officials have said that all 10 people on board were killed when a private jet en route from Moscow to St Petersburg crashed near the village of Kuzhenkino. Flight data shows the plane reached an altitude of around 28,000 feet, before it suddenly stopped transmitting tracking details.

Remind me who Prigozhin is?
The apparently dead Prigozhin was the leader of the Wagner group, a self-titled “private military company” accused of committing human rights abuses worldwide.

The group had fought alongside the Russian army in Ukraine, and Prigozhin had been one of Putin’s closest allies. But two months ago, he marched his forces on Moscow before agreeing to turn around at the last moment. Under a subsequent deal, he was exiled from Russia.

“It marked the biggest challenge to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s rule in 23 years,” CNN said of the insurrection. “But it also painted a target on Prigozhin’s back.”

And was Putin behind the crash?
“Russian authorities have launched an investigation into the cause of the crash, amid heavy speculation,” said the BBC. Some unnamed sources told Russian media they believe the plane was shot down by one or more surface-to-air missiles, Reuters reported, but this claim has not been verified.

Prigozhin’s allies were quick to accuse the Russian defence ministry of assassinating the leader - and Joe Biden also appeared to suggest that Putin could have been behind the incident. “There’s not much that happens in Russia that Putin’s not behind,” said the US president. “But I don’t know enough to know the answer.”

🇪🇨 A historic example of climate democracy

Ecuadorians have voted to halt oil drilling in Yasuní National Park in a historic referendum which could help shape the future of the Amazon.

What’s the story?
The result of Sunday’s binding referendum has permanently banned drilling in an oil block located on the eastern edge of the Yasuní reserve, where excavation has been underway since 2016. Millions of people took part in the nationwide vote, with more than 58% opting in favour of the ban.

Why is this so significant?
The Yasuní reserve is one of the most biodiverse regions on the planet - and home to two of the world’s last “uncontacted” Indigenous communities. The referendum has been hailed as a historic example of climate democracy, at a time when protecting the Amazon is more urgent than ever.

“This is a major victory for all Indigenous peoples, for the animals, the plants, the spirits of the forest and our climate,” said Indigenous Waorani leader Nemonte Nenquimo. “Finally, we are going to kick oil companies out of our territory!”

What’s the other side of the story?
Science news platform Mongabay has pointed out that not all Indigenous people are in agreement, with numerous communities in the region reportedly voting against the referendum. “They argue that the oil industry has brought development to the area and provided them with stable livelihoods,” explained the site.

Earlier this month, Ecuador’s energy minister told Al Jazeera that ending the drilling would “result in a loss of $1.2bn annually” - and some economists have warned that the referendum ruling could have dire consequences for the country’s already-struggling economy.

Is there anything else I should know?
The referendum took place alongside the first round of Ecuador’s presidential election, which will be decided by a runoff vote in October. The election has been overshadowed by extreme violence, including the assassination of anti-corruption candidate Fernando Villavicencio as he left a campaign rally earlier this month.

“On one hand we have the violence, the candidates, parties,” said Pedro Bermo from Yasunidos, an environmental collective that pushed for the vote on oil drilling. “The referendum is the contrary - a citizen campaign full of hope, joy, art, activism and a lot of collective work.”

👏 Bricks with braille: Lego will soon start selling bricks coded with braille, designed to help vision-impaired children learn to read the touch-based alphabet. The bricks - developed in partnership with various blind organisations - will be available from next month.

🖋️ GCSE results day: Students across England, Wales and Northern Ireland are awaiting their GCSE results this morning. Teens have been warned that the number of pupils in England who will achieve at least a grade 4 in maths and English GCSE is expected to fall this year.

🇺🇸 US election latest: The first Republican primary debate of the 2024 campaign took place last night, during which eight candidates “traded barbs” and “jockeyed for position behind the absent front-runner, Donald Trump”.

🇯🇵 Japan protests: Demonstrations are currently taking place against the decision to release treated radioactive water from the Fukushima nuclear plant into the Pacific Ocean. The level of tritium in the wastewater is seven times less than the World Health Organization’s benchmark for safe drinking water.

📝 Rishi Sunak probe: Parliament’s standards watchdog has concluded that the PM inadvertently breached ministerial code by failing to declare his wife’s shares in a childcare agency boosted by the Spring Budget.

Trivia answer: B) The ancient village - believed to date back 8,500 years - was submerged beneath Lake Ohrid in Albania. Check out some truly incredible pictures of the discovery here.

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