After 100 days of medical treatment, the ageing turtle in Hoan Kiem (Sword Return) Lake has been declared fully cured of its injuries.

The animal had been kept in an isolated pool on an island within the lake so that it could recover from the injuries caused by cannibalistic red-eared turtles and the hooks of the many illegal fishermen around the lake.

Dr Le Xuan Rao, director of the Hanoi Department of Science and Technology, said the release of the turtle had gone according to plan.

The turtle is classed by scientists as an extremely rare species. Similar turtles could once be found in many rivers and streams in northern Vietnam. /.