Funeral of Garda Kevin Flatley takes place in Co Dublin
Garda Flatley died after being hit by a motorcycle as he was carrying out speed checks on the R132 at Lanestown, north Co Dublin. Video: Dan Dennison
Emmy performs "Laika Party" for Ireland's entry at the second semi-final for Eurovision 2025.
Cork-based singer/songwriter Martin Leahy marks three years of singing his song Everyone Should Have a Home outside Leinster House. Video: Dan Dennison
Syrians in Damascus celebrate after US president Donald Trump announced plans to ease sanctions on Syria and normalise relation. Video: Sally Hayden
Israel's military offensive in the Gaza Strip has killed at least 52,908 people since October 2023, while the total number of injuries has climbed to 119,721.
Hollywood icon Robert De Niro lambasted 'philistine' US President Donald Trump and his proposed movie tariff at the Cannes Film Festival's opening ceremony.
Released Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander was reunited with family members after 19 months of captivity by Hamas. Video: Reuters
Dubliner Oscar Despard captained a team from Christ's College, Cambridge to victory in the final of the BBC student quizshow University Challenge. Video: BBC
The Irish Times chess columnist Jim 'JJ' Walsh (93) has retired. He has written about chess in the newspaper for close to 70 years. Video: Dan Dennison
The front facade of an unoccupied cottage in Ranelagh has crumbled and fallen onto the street, obstructing a footpath. Video: Dara MacDonaill
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Irish Times
38 minutes ago
- Irish Times
Convoy of activists on way to Gaza to demand an end to Israeli hostilities
More than 1,000 grassroots activists have begun a 2,400km overland journey across North Africa to Gaza to demand an end to Israel's war and deliver humanitarian aid to the besieged enclave. The 112-vehicle convoy, which left Tunis on Monday, is expected to swell as it travels through Libya and Egypt. Participants say they have been forced to act as their governments have failed to end the 20-month war between Israel and Hamas. Organisers said the convoy was not bringing aid into Gaza, but rather aimed at carrying out a 'symbolic act' by breaking the blockade on the territory. READ MORE 'This is a message to the people of Gaza: You are not alone,' said Sheikh Yahya Sari of the Algerian Association of Muslim Scholars. 'We share your pain, and this is a form of public pressure against the occupier in the face of international failure to stop the massacres.' Doctors, lawyers, journalists, diplomats, trade unionists and politicians from Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, and Mauritania have signed up for the Maghreb Caravan of Steadfastness, which has been organised by the non-profit Co-ordination for Joint Action for Palestine in Tunisia group and several other civil rights organisations. The convoy is being seen as historic in the Maghreb, the western part of the Arab world, which has largely distanced itself from events in Palestine. Morocco normalised relations with Israel in 2000, along with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain in the Mashreq, the eastern Arab world. 'This initiative is aimed [at] all free people of the world to stand against occupation and genocide,' convoy spokesman Wael Naouar told the Tunisian news agency. 'Breaking the blockade is not just about delivering aid. It's also about evacuating the wounded so they can receive medical treatment outside the occupied territories.' The organisers said the convoy's launch 'comes at a time when UN reports indicate the people of Gaza are facing the worst humanitarian disaster in modern times [as] 100 per cent of the Strip's population is food insecure, while more than half of Gaza's population is now homeless after their homes were destroyed.' The caravan will pause in Cairo on Thursday to join forces with the Global March to Gaza, which is being staged by activists from 32 countries, before travelling on Friday to the town of Arish in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula. From there, participants will walk the remaining 50km, arriving on Sunday in Rafah, the city straddling the border between Egypt and Gaza. There, diplomats and rights activists are expected to try to negotiate access to Gaza. Conditions in Gaza have worsened dramatically since the Hamas-led attack on Israel in October 2023. Israel recently barred the entry of humanitarian aid into the territory for 80 days, bringing the population to the brink of famine, according to international aid organisations. It has since supported an aid delivery system that has been marred by violence and shunned by humanitarian groups.
Irish Times
38 minutes ago
- Irish Times
Protest planned in Israel at marriage of Netanyahu's son
Opponents of Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu are planning to demonstrate outside his son's wedding next week. Monday's wedding of Avner Netanyahu (30), the prime minister's youngest son, and Amit Yardeni (27), a cybersecurity researcher, is taking place at Ronit Farm in the centre of the country, one of Israel's plushest event venues. More than 1,000 guests have been invited, prompting criticism in Israel that such an extravagance – while the war in Gaza continues , soldiers are among those being killed and 55 hostages remain in Hamas captivity – underscores the disconnect between the Netanyahu family and the public at large. Activists are discussing several tactics, such as blocking approach roads to the venue, using air horns, drums and loudspeakers to disrupt the event and photographing guests in a 'name-and-shame' campaign. READ MORE The police plan a big operation to allow the wedding to proceed without disruption. Prominent anti-government activist Ami Dror urged the groom to tone down the wedding, launching a scathing attack on the prime minister's wife, Sara Netanyahu. 'While thousands of reservists got married in wheelchairs, while thousands of families will never get to marry off their children, while the families of the hostages can't sleep at night – you're throwing a ball in the style of Elana Ceaușescu? In the most expensive venue in Israel?' Sources close to the couple say Avner Netanyahu made it clear he doesn't want ministers and members of the Knesset parliament to attend the wedding, reportedly prompting the ire of some leading politicians who consider themselves personal friends of the Netanyahu family. Avner has kept out of the public eye, in sharp contrast to his older brother Yair, who has relocated to Miami but maintains a steady flow of vitriolic social media posts against opponents of his father, the judiciary and the media. Some opponents of the prime minister have warned that the wedding protest may be counterproductive. 'What is clear is that many good people who believe in this protest movement are now deeply conflicted,' wrote Ariela Ringel Hoffman, in the daily Yediot Aharonot newspaper. 'And stunts like this are fuel for the engine that keeps Netanyahu in power – and makes him stronger.'
Irish Times
2 hours ago
- Irish Times
Pensions of 13,000 ex-civil servants being checked for errors, with one potentially owing €280,000
A pool of 13,000 retired civil servants, as well as current and former Government ministers, are to have their pension deductions checked after 'serious and systemic operational issues' were identified at the State office that handles pension payments. Minister for Public Expenditure Jack Chambers revealed errors at the National Shared Services Office (NSSO) on Tuesday, insisting the State will recoup any money owed. One former senior civil servant could owe as much as €280,000 as a result of the errors. The cohort of 13,000 former civil servants were all in work-share arrangements. Not all are necessarily affected. READ MORE It is believed most current Government ministers will owe money to the State due to errors in their pension deductions, although some may be due some money back. Others are unaffected. Expected sums owed by current ministers range from hundreds of euro to just above €30,000. Other ministers may be owed hundreds or up to about €20,000. The issue also affects pension deductions for ministers in previous Governments. There is a third group of 30 former senior civil servants who are affected and, while some will owe as little as a few hundred euro, one individual is believed to owe €280,000 as a result of the NSSO error. Mr Chambers said the NSSO has not yet been able to establish the full scale of the issues or the number of people affected. His department is in 'ongoing engagement' with the office that provides payroll and pensions services to public bodies and Government departments. Mr Chambers, who updated the Cabinet on the situation on Tuesday, said the errors 'span different time periods and have been detected in different ways'. They have arisen from 'administrative errors' in the NSSO and were 'not the fault of any of the individuals impacted', he said. One issue, going back 20 years, relates to the 'miscalculation and underpayment' of pensions for some work-sharing civil service retirees who were in receipt of allowances. The NSSO is seeking to establish the scale of the problem. Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Mr Chambers could not offer an estimate for how much the State owes or is due. An external audit will focus on validating all aspects of the issues identified and to identify any further issues, he said. Mr Chambers said a pool of 13,000 retired civil servants will have their pensions checked, 'although the number affected is likely to be smaller than this' as not all will have anomalies. He said anyone with queries about work-sharing pensions can contact the NSSO's customer contact centre. Mr Chambers said the issue affecting current and former ministers relates to 'superannuation deductions and additional superannuation contributions with respect to salaries, allowances or gifted income'. It is understood part of the issue arises from the treatment of part of ministers' income returned to the state in recent years and how their pension deductions were calculated as a result. Mr Chambers said the NSSO is contacting affected people and will 'outline the issue as it relates to them and make arrangements for the recoupment of any monies owed or to issue refunds as appropriate'. 'As these are personal matters relating to individuals' pay, I'm not in a position to disclose the individual amounts,' he said. Mr Chambers said the third issue, affecting 30 identified cases, concerns the administration of chargeable excess tax and withholding tax for senior grade civil service pensions. Mr Chambers said the issues at the NSSO are 'completely unacceptable' and must be corrected 'as a matter of urgency'. The Minister has appointed Derek Moran, former Department of Finance secretary general, as the new chair of the NSSO's advisory board. He has asked Mr Moran to 'immediately' commission an external forensic audit of the NSSO systems and processes. Mr Chambers has separately requested 'a broad external review of the NSSO's capacity and structures' to ensure it is equipped to fulfil its responsibilities for the future. Mr Chambers said the legislation underpinning the NSSO and its governance will need to be amended to ensure greater accountability and legislation is 'being drafted'. He said the NSSO has advised him it is not aware of any further issues at this time.
