Rat Earns World Record for Sniffing Landmines in Cambodia

This handout photo taken on February 23, 2022 and released by Belgian charity APOPO on April 4, 2025 shows a rat named Ronin sniffing for landmines in a mine field in Preah Vihear province. (Photo by Handout / APOPO / AFP)
This handout photo taken on February 23, 2022 and released by Belgian charity APOPO on April 4, 2025 shows a rat named Ronin sniffing for landmines in a mine field in Preah Vihear province. (Photo by Handout / APOPO / AFP)
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Rat Earns World Record for Sniffing Landmines in Cambodia

This handout photo taken on February 23, 2022 and released by Belgian charity APOPO on April 4, 2025 shows a rat named Ronin sniffing for landmines in a mine field in Preah Vihear province. (Photo by Handout / APOPO / AFP)
This handout photo taken on February 23, 2022 and released by Belgian charity APOPO on April 4, 2025 shows a rat named Ronin sniffing for landmines in a mine field in Preah Vihear province. (Photo by Handout / APOPO / AFP)

A landmine-hunting rat in Cambodia has set a new world record by sniffing out more than 100 mines and pieces of unexploded ordnance, a charity said Friday.

Ronin, a giant African pouched rat, has tracked down 109 landmines and 15 other potentially deadly war remnants since his deployment to northern Preah Vihear province in August 2021, the Belgian charity APOPO said in a statement.

Five-year-old Ronin has been named the most successful Mine Detection Rat (MDR) in the organization’s history, AFP reported.

"His exceptional accomplishments have earned him the Guinness World Records title for most landmines detected by a rat, highlighting the critical role of HeroRats in humanitarian demining," APOPO said.

Ronin beat the previous record, held by hero rodent Magawa who found 71 landmines and 38 UXOs during his five-year service before retirement in 2021.

Magawa, who was awarded a gold medal for heroism for clearing mines from about 225,000 square metres of land -- the equivalent of 42 football pitches -- died in 2022.

Ronin may have two years or more of detection work ahead of him, APOPO said.



An Uncontrolled Wildfire Sends a Cloud of Smoke over Spain’s Capital

 A firefighting plane drops water during efforts to extinguish a wildfire near Navalcarnero, on the outskirts of Madrid, Spain, Thursday, July 17, 2025. (A. Pérez Meca/Europa Press via AP)
A firefighting plane drops water during efforts to extinguish a wildfire near Navalcarnero, on the outskirts of Madrid, Spain, Thursday, July 17, 2025. (A. Pérez Meca/Europa Press via AP)
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An Uncontrolled Wildfire Sends a Cloud of Smoke over Spain’s Capital

 A firefighting plane drops water during efforts to extinguish a wildfire near Navalcarnero, on the outskirts of Madrid, Spain, Thursday, July 17, 2025. (A. Pérez Meca/Europa Press via AP)
A firefighting plane drops water during efforts to extinguish a wildfire near Navalcarnero, on the outskirts of Madrid, Spain, Thursday, July 17, 2025. (A. Pérez Meca/Europa Press via AP)

An uncontrolled wildfire burned outside Madrid on Thursday, sending a giant cloud of smoke over the Spanish capital.

The fire broke out in the town of Mentrida in central Spain's Castile-La Mancha region about 50 kilometers (30 miles) southwest of the capital. Local authorities urged residents to stay home and close their windows.

Spanish authorities said the blaze had burned around 3,000 hectares (roughly 7,400 acres) by the late evening.

Firefighters deployed on the ground and in the air were working to extinguish the fire that began around 3 pm.

Wind blew the smoke over Madrid, where in the afternoon skies turned orange and thick with smoke.

Large parts of Spain are under heat and fire warnings, with temperatures on Thursday reaching 37 degrees Celsius (100 degrees Fahrenheit) in Madrid.

Europe is the world’s fastest-warming continent, with temperatures increasing at twice the speed as the global average since the 1980s, according to the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service.

Scientists warn that climate change is exacerbating the frequency and intensity of heat and dryness, which makes places more vulnerable to wildfires.