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☆ Simon Harris becomes Ireland’s youngest-ever leader
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-09 | by ( Rob Picheta | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —Simon Harris has become the youngest-ever prime minister of Ireland, officially taking office in Dublin on Tuesday after Leo Varadkar suddenly stepped down last month. Harris, 37, ran unopposed to replace Varadkar as leader of the ruling Fine Gael party, and the final formalities of his rise to power were completed in the Dáil, Ireland’s parliament. And we are seeing innocent children, women, and men being starved and slaughtered,” Harris told lawmakers in the Irish parliament. The son of a taxi driver, born in eastern Ireland, Harris studied journalism and French at a Dublin university but dropped out to instead focus on politics. As health minister, Harris was prominent when Ireland voted to legalize abortion.

Persons: CNN — Simon Harris, Leo Varadkar, Harris, Varadkar, Sinn Fein, Israel, “, ” Harris, Fine, ”, Brian Lawless, Simon Harris ”, “ chillax, “ Didn’t, chillax, …, Jennifer Bray, Enda Kenny, Harris’s Organizations: CNN, Ireland, Fine Gael, Irish Republican Army, Irish, Hot Press, Varadkar, Twitter, “, Sky News Locations: Dublin, Ireland’s, Ireland, Gaza, “, Northern Ireland

☆ Rose Dugdale, Heiress Turned Irish Independence Fighter, Dies at 82
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-22 | by ( Clay Risen | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Rose Dugdale, an Oxford-educated Englishwoman who left a life of wealth to become a partisan activist fighting for Irish independence, in a career that included bomb making, hijacking and art theft, died on March 18 in Dublin. Her death, in a nursing home, was confirmed by Aengus O Snodaigh, a friend and a member of the Irish Parliament. Throughout the 1970s, Ms. Dugdale, whose family owned a large share of the insurance company Lloyd’s of London, captivated the British and Irish news media with her exploits. She and an accomplice were arrested in 1973 for stealing thousands of dollars in art and silverware from her parents’ home, with plans to sell it and give the proceeds to the Irish Republican Army. Her father, Eric, appeared as a witness at her trial, and under British law she was allowed to cross-examine him herself — an opportunity she used to make political statements.

Persons: Rose Dugdale, Aengus O, Dugdale, Patricia Hearst, ’, Eric, — Organizations: Irish, Irish Republican Army Locations: Oxford, Dublin, London, United States

☆ Opinion: Is the US on the brink of another civil war?
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-16 | by ( Opinion Bruce Hoffman | Jacob Ware | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

The most dismal assessment, though, is that of Canadian journalist Stephen Marche who, in his 2022 book, The Next Civil War: Dispatches form the American Future, contends that a new American civil war is inevitable. Remember that the United States leads the world — by far — in the number of firearms in private hands. There are an estimated 393 million privately held firearms in the United States — more than one gun per person. In fact, there are more civilian-held guns in the United States than the other top 25 countries in the world combined. Indeed, more guns were purchased in the United States in 2020 — nearly 23 million — than any other year on record.

Persons: Bruce Hoffman, Jacob Ware, Donald Trump, Biden, … ” Bruce Hoffman Michael Lionstar, Barbara F, Walter, ” Jacob Ware Jacob Ware Accelerationism, Barack Obama, Steven Simon, Jonathan Stevenson, “, ”, Stephen Marche, —, Simon, Stevenson, Bois —, Timothy McVeigh, Richard Haass, ” Haass, ” Robert Miles Organizations: of Foreign Relations, Georgetown University, DeSales University, . Press, CNN, Department of Homeland Security, Oklahoma City, National Security, University of Maryland’s Center for Democracy, Washington Post, University of Maryland, “, Capitol, ”, Survey, Foreign, Irish Republican Army, IRA Locations: America ”, Columbia, Texas, Western, America, Northern Ireland, United States, Switzerland, Northern, Ireland

☆ Tensions over Israel-Hamas war loom over Irish Taoiseach’s usually jovial annual visit to White House
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-15 | by ( Kevin Liptak | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

There will still be shamrocks this year, but Israel’s war in Gaza is lending a darker backdrop to the occasion. While he rebuffed calls by some Irish politicians to boycott the annual White House stop, he has made plain the Gaza war lends fresh urgency to this year’s talks. “I’ll use that opportunity to put across Ireland’s perspective on this and tell them how Irish people feel. Last year, Varadkar declared Biden “unmistakably a son of Ireland” and announced the president’s forthcoming visit to the island. Barry’s opposition to Biden’s foreign policy predated the war in Gaza; he boycotted Biden’s address to the Dáil in April.

Persons: Patrick’s, Joe Biden, —, Leo Varadkar, Biden, “, ”, Varadkar, “ I’m, Ireland ”, Israel ”, Jane Ohlmeyer, Arthur Balfour, Mick Barry, Biden’s, Michelle O’Neill, O’Neill, Sinn Fein, Carter, Clinton Organizations: Washington CNN, shamrocks, Irish, RTE, White, Muredach’s, Hamas, Trinity College Dublin, Socialist Party, Capitol, Northern, St, ”, Irish Republican Army, Biden Locations: United States, Ireland, Gaza, Boston, St, Ballina ., Israel, Dublin, Palestine, British, Ireland’s, Northern Ireland, Northern

☆ N. Ireland Has 'Brighter Future' With Power Sharing Return, Sunak Says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-04 | by ( Feb. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

By Amanda FergusonBELFAST (Reuters) - Northern Ireland faces a "brighter future" with the restoration of devolved government after two years of deadlock, Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said on a visit to Belfast on Sunday. Sunak's government brokered a deal with the pro-British Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) to allow the return of power sharing by easing post-Brexit trade frictions. "In the last few days we've made significant progress towards a brighter future for people here," Sunak told broadcasters. O'Neill told Sky News on Sunday that it was a "decade of opportunity" for Northern Ireland. Under the power-sharing agreement, the post of deputy has equal power but less symbolic weight than the First Minister.

Persons: Amanda Ferguson BELFAST, Rishi Sunak, Sinn Fein's Michelle O'Neill, we've, Sunak, Sinn Fein, O'Neill, Emma Little, Paul Sandle, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Reuters, Britain's, Sunday, Irish, British Democratic Unionist Party, Irish Republican Army, IRA, Sky News, Belfast Good, First Locations: Northern Ireland, Belfast, British, Ireland

☆ Historic day in Northern Ireland as Michelle O’Neill becomes first nationalist leader
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-03 | by ( Amy Cassidy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —In a historic moment, a nationalist politician has become First Minister of Northern Ireland as power-sharing resumed after a two-year break. But the symbolism of a Sinn Féin representative becoming first minister is still obvious and in Northern Ireland symbols matter a lot – perhaps too much. “The whole point of creating Northern Ireland a century ago was that it would always have a Protestant majority committed to staying within the United Kingdom. “It doesn’t mean that a United Ireland is an immediate prospect but it does mean that the whole future of Northern Ireland is very much an open question. The task now is to make that openness promising and full of opportunity rather than threatening and full of fear.”The Northern Ireland Assembly is the devolved legislature for Northern Ireland.

Persons: Michelle O’Neill, Sinn Féin, ”, “, ” O’Neill, Emma Little, –, “ Michelle, Protestants –, ’, Fintan O’Toole, Michelle O’Neill’s Organizations: CNN, Irish Republican Army, IRA, Unionist, Democratic Unionist Party, DUP, Northern Ireland Assembly, Irish Republican, Protestants, Northern, Westminster Locations: Northern Ireland, Ireland, Irish, United Kingdom, United Ireland, London

☆ Northern Ireland appoints Irish nationalist as First Minister in historic shift
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-03 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

BELFAST, NORTHERN IRELAND - FEBRUARY 3: Michelle O'Neill makes her way to the Assembly chamber before being nominated as First Minister at Stormont on February 3, 2024 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Sinn Fein's Michelle O'Neill becomes the new Northern Ireland First Minister. This appointment marks the first time a nationalist has held the post of First Minister. Britain's minister for the region, Chris Heaton-Harris, said the restoration of government represented a "great day for Northern Ireland". As the former political wing of the Irish Republican Army (IRA), Sinn Fein was long shunned by the political establishment on both sides of the border.

Persons: Michelle O'Neill, Sinn Fein's Michelle O'Neill, Charles McQuillan, Michelle O'Neill's, Sinn Fein's, O'Neill, Chris Heaton, Harris, Sinn Fein, Emma Little Organizations: Stormont, Northern Ireland First, DUP, Sinn Fein, Democratic Unionist Party, Irish Republican Army, IRA Locations: BELFAST, IRELAND, Belfast , Northern Ireland, British, Ireland, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom, Irish Republic

LONDON (AP) — Sinn Fein Vice President Michelle O'Neill is poised to make history Saturday by becoming the first Irish nationalist leader of Northern Ireland as the government returned to work after a two-year boycott by unionists. Northern Ireland was established as a unionist, Protestant-majority part of the U.K. in 1921, following independence for the Republic of Ireland. The return to government came exactly two years after a DUP boycott over a dispute about trade restrictions for goods coming into Northern Ireland from Great Britain. Northern Ireland’s 1.9 million people were left without a functioning administration as the cost of living soared and public services were strained. The new changes included legislation “affirming Northern Ireland’s constitutional status” as part of the U.K. and gives local politicians “democratic oversight” of any future EU laws that might apply to Northern Ireland.

Persons: Sinn, Michelle O'Neill, O'Neill, Brexit, ” O’Neill, Sinn Fein Organizations: Irish, Republic of Ireland, Democratic Unionist Party, DUP, Northern Ireland Assembly, Stormont Assembly, Irish Republican Army, Windsor Locations: Northern Ireland, Northern, Ireland, Republic of, Government, Stormont, Great Britain . Northern, Belfast

☆ What to Know About the Return of Power-Sharing in Northern Ireland
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-02 | by ( Stephen Castle | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

After two years of political gridlock, Northern Ireland is set to finally have a functioning government again. There will be one significant change since the last time they gathered: The first minister role will be held for the first time by a Sinn Fein politician, Michelle O’Neill, a significant moment in the history of Northern Ireland. What is Sinn Fein, and why does it matter that the party will hold the ‘first minister’ role? Sinn Fein was once regarded as the political wing of the Irish Republican Army, or I.R.A., a paramilitary group that waged a bloody campaign against British troops deployed in Northern Ireland. Since then, Northern Ireland’s first minister has always been a unionist, meaning he or she represents a political party committed to keeping the territory within the United Kingdom.

Persons: Michelle O’Neill, Sinn Fein, ’, Sinn Fein’s Organizations: Sinn Fein, Irish Republican Army, British Locations: Northern Ireland, Belfast, Northern, United Kingdom

LONDON (AP) — The U.K. government on Wednesday published the details of a deal that has broken Northern Ireland’s political deadlock and should — barring a major upset — restore the regional government in Belfast after almost two years on ice. Political Cartoons View All 253 ImagesThat angered Northern Ireland’s British unionists, who said the east-west customs border undermined Northern Ireland’s place in the U.K. In February 2022, the Democratic Unionist Party walked out of Northern Ireland’s government in protest. The new changes go farther, eliminating routine checks and paperwork for goods entering Northern Ireland and making legal tweaks designed to reassure unionists that Northern Ireland’s position in the U.K. is secure. The Northern Ireland Assembly then can meet to elect a speaker, followed by the nomination of a first minister and a deputy first minister.

Persons: Michelle O’Neill, Sinn Fein Organizations: European Union, EU, Northern Ireland, U.K, Democratic Unionist Party, DUP, Northern Ireland’s, Windsor Framework, Northern, Northern Ireland Assembly, Sinn, Irish Republican Army Locations: Belfast, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, Northern, Northern Ireland’s, Ireland

☆ Northern Ireland Police Chief Resigns Amid Mounting Scandals
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-05 | by ( Megan Specia | More About Megan Specia | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The top police official in Northern Ireland has resigned amid mounting scandals, raising questions about the leadership of policing in a region where law enforcement has long been a contentious issue, and prompting calls for further changes in the force. Calls had been growing for the official, Simon Byrne, the chief constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland, to step down after a major data breach last month. On Monday, Mr. Byrne announced his resignation after an emergency meeting of the Policing Board, just a week after refusing to step down in the wake of another meeting. “The last few days have been very difficult for all concerned,” he said in a statement. “Regardless of the rights and wrongs, it is now time for someone new to lead this proud and resolute organization.”

Persons: Simon Byrne, Sinn Féin, Byrne, “, ” Organizations: Police Service of Northern, Northern Ireland Assembly, Irish Republican Army, Board Locations: Northern Ireland, Police Service of Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland

☆ PSNI data breach: Northern Ireland police investigating 'calamitous' leak revealing information on current employees
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-09 | by ( Christian Edwards Jennifer Hauser | Christian Edwards | Jennifer Hauser | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) has apologized for mistakenly sharing sensitive data in response to a Freedom of Information (FOI) request seeking to understand the numbers of officers in the organization. Police in Northern Ireland remain under threat and have been regularly targeted in long years of conflict over British rule in the region. The data breach comes just months after a serving Northern Irish police officer was left fighting for his life after being shot multiple times in front of his young son in February. Assistant Chief Constable Chris Todd apologized to PSNI officers at a news conference Tuesday. Kelly said many serving officers “do everything possible to protect their police roles,” due to heightened security concerns in Northern Ireland.

Persons: ”, Chris Todd, PSNI’s, Todd, Rebecca Black, ” Liam Kelly, Kelly, you’ve Organizations: CNN, Police Service of Northern, Police, Northern Irish, Irish Republican Army, IRA, Northern Ireland’s Police Federation, BBC Locations: Northern Ireland, Police Service of Northern Ireland, Ireland, Belfast

☆ Car crashes into Downing Street where U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak lives
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-25 | by ( Henry Austin | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Police officers work at the site where a car crashed into the front gates of Downing Street in London, Britain, May 25, 2023. Armed police on Thursday arrested a man after a car was driven into the gates of Downing Street where Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and several other senior politicians reside. Video footage posted on social media showed a silver hatchback car heading straight for Downing Street's gates at a slow speed across Whitehall, the main thoroughfare in London's government district. Downing Street's gates are manned by armed and unarmed police officers at all times. In 1991 the IRA fired three mortars at the street, one of which exploded in the backyard of No.

Persons: Rishi Sunak, Sunak, Downing, Simon Parry, John Major Organizations: Britain's, Metropolitan Police, Associated Press, Britain's Press Association, Irish Republican Army, Islamic State Locations: Downing, London, Britain, Whitehall, London's

☆ Sinn Fein sweep past unionist rivals again in Northern Ireland local elections
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-20 | by ( Amanda Ferguson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BELFAST, May 20 (Reuters) - Irish nationalists Sinn Fein followed up last year's historic Northern Ireland Assembly victory by overtaking their unionist rivals by a wide margin in council elections on Saturday to become the biggest party at local level for the first time. It is the latest political milestone for the former political wing of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) who want to leave the United Kingdom and form a united Ireland. The left-wing party also comfortably leads opinion polls in the Republic of Ireland ahead of national elections due in 2025. The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), until last year the biggest party at local and regional level, had 118. The poll also marked the first time a Black person was elected to office in Northern Ireland, with Maasai woman Lilian Seenoi-Bar winning a seat for the nationalist SDLP.

☆ An Outsider Takes on Ireland, From Inside a Plastic Bag
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-22 | by ( Rachel Connolly | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

Issues like these are still relatively under-discussed in the Irish news media and society, and Chambers’s fans seem to welcome his candor. He gets “thousands and thousands” of social media messages about mental health, he said, but he could never deal with interactions like those in person. “If I didn’t have the bag,” Chambers said, “I’d stop talking about mental health‌.”On other episodes, Chambers talks frankly about an economic climate that he says has infantilized his generation. Chambers said the Irish news media continued to draw links between the party and terrorism. Several popular Instagram accounts attest to this growing interest in Northern Irish politics among young people in the Republic.

☆ Biden Must Tread Rocky Path in Belfast Before Tending His Irish Roots
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( Mark Landler | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +5 min

Though Mr. Biden deplored I.R.A. The events became one of the most infamous episodes of the Troubles, known as Bloody Sunday. Mr. Powell said Mr. Biden had made his own contribution later on by pressing the British government to break an impasse with the European Union over post-Brexit trade rules for Northern Ireland. In doing so, he fulfilled a promise he made to Mr. Biden when the two met last fall at a summit in Indonesia, during which the prime minister vowed to resolve the issue. “It is possible that Biden could be seen as adding more pressure on the unionists,” said Katy Hayward, a professor of politics at Queen’s University in Belfast.

☆ Northern Ireland police warn of dissident violence ahead of Biden visit -BBC
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

April 7 (Reuters) - The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) has warned of the potential for public disorder by dissident republicans over the Easter weekend, days before a visit by U.S. President Joe Biden, the BBC reported on Thursday. The PSNI has made temporary changes to work shifts to put more officers onto frontline duties, he said. The Police warning comes ahead of President Biden's visit next week and after British intelligence agency MI5 increased the threat level from domestic terrorism in Northern Ireland to "severe". There is sporadic violence in Northern Ireland by small groups that has kept the threat level mostly at "severe" since the system was introduced in 2010. Reporting by Rahat Sandhu and Shivani Tanna in Bengaluru; Editing by Christopher CushingOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Celebrating Peace in Northern Ireland: The Good Friday Agreement’s 25th Anniversary
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-07 | by ( David Luhnow | Max Colchester | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

After Britain deployed troops, the Irish Republican Army stepped up its campaign against the British state, and its use of car bombs would strike terror across Northern Ireland and Britain. The aftermath of an IRA bombing in London in March 1973. Central Press/AFP/Getty Images

[1/4] Andrea Brown, daughter of Royal Ulster Constabulary officer Eric Brown who was killed in 1983, holds a portrait of her father in Moira, Northern Ireland, March 29, 2023. In a short section, the deal said it was essential to address the suffering of victims as a necessary element of reconciliation. The bill is opposed by all Northern Ireland political parties, the United Nations, the Council of Europe, the Irish government and victims' groups. "It toys with what is a very delicate peace settlement here," said Amnesty International Northern Ireland deputy director Grainne Teggart. In 2019 a Northern Ireland court ordered an independent investigation into alleged collusion between security services and the gang suspected of the killing.

In a short section, the deal said it was essential to address the suffering of victims as a necessary element of reconciliation. The bill is opposed by all Northern Ireland political parties, the United Nations, the Council of Europe, the Irish government and victims' groups. "It toys with what is a very delicate peace settlement here," said Amnesty International Northern Ireland deputy director Grainne Teggart. KEEP GOING[1/4] Andrea Brown, daughter of Royal Ulster Constabulary officer Eric Brown who was killed in 1983, holds a portrait of her father in Moira, Northern Ireland, March 29, 2023. In 2019 a Northern Ireland court ordered an independent investigation into alleged collusion between security services and the gang suspected of the killing.

☆ The long road to Northern Ireland's Good Friday Agreement
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Jason Cairnduff/File PhotoApril 3 (Reuters) - On April 10, Northern Ireland marks the 25th anniversary since the signing of the Good Friday Agreement, which largely ended three decades of conflict in the British-ruled province. The new Northern Ireland parliament, at Stormont outside Belfast, is dominated by pro-British Protestant "unionists", who will control it for the next 50 years. Nov. 30, 1995 - U.S. President Bill Clinton visits Northern Ireland. May 30, 1996 - Elections held for a Northern Ireland forum ahead of all-party talks. April 10, 1998 - After negotiations continue through the night, the Good Friday Agreement, also known as the Belfast Agreement, is signed.

☆ The 30 years of Northern Ireland's 'Troubles'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

In a 75-minute period, the Irish Republican Army (IRA) exploded 22 bombs across Belfast, killing nine people and wounding around 130. Nov. 21, 1974 - IRA bombs exploded in two pubs in Birmingham, central England, killing 21 people. Hours later, two IRA remotely detonated bombs killed 18 British soldiers on the shores of Carlingford Lough at Warrenpoint, County Down. July 20, 1982 - Two remote-controlled IRA bombs killed 11 members of the British Army in attacks on military ceremonies at Hyde Park and Regent's Park in central London. Nov. 8, 1987 - 11 people, including a police officer, were killed in an IRA bomb attack during a Remembrance Day ceremony in Enniskillen, County Fermanagh.

[1/3] Prime Minister Tony Blair (R) embraces Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern after all parties reached a historic peace agreement April 10, 1998. The peace has utterly transformed the region, largely ending three decades of bitter violence that killed 3,600. "Nothing's ever irresolvable" said Blair, summing up the stubborn optimism many developed working in Northern Ireland at the turn of the millennium. Nationalists, who are mostly Catholic, say Northern Ireland was wrenched from the EU in a UK-wide vote even though its smallest region voted 56% to 44% to remain. "There is an exhaustion and frustration," at the DUP's repeated objections, said Ahern, Irish prime minister from 1997-2008.

☆ Explainer: What is the Good Friday Agreement and when was it signed?
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Feb 23 (Reuters) - The Good Friday Agreement largely ended the "Troubles", three decades of violence that had racked Northern Ireland since the late 1960s. It was signed on April 10, 1998 - which fell that year on Good Friday in the Christian Easter holiday. The deal was formally two interlinked agreements: a treaty between the British and Irish governments and an agreement between the Northern Irish parties. "North-south" bodies were created to encourage cooperation between Northern Ireland and Ireland, while "east-west" institutions linked Britain and Ireland. Overall, Northern Ireland has enjoyed peace for much of the 25 years since the agreement was signed, with only a small number of splinter groups involved in sporadic attacks.

☆ Britain's Sunak touts EU protocol progress in Northern Ireland, no deal yet
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( Amanda Ferguson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

After weeks of intense London-Brussels talks, momentum has been building towards a deal to revise the Northern Ireland Protocol - the arrangements agreed to avoid a hard border with EU member Ireland when Britain exited the EU in 2020. "I had positive conversations with political parties in Northern Ireland," Prime Minister Rishi Sunak told reporters. In Belfast, Sunak focused his attention on the Democratic Unionist Party, whose opposition to the protocol must be overcome to make any deal work. The other political parties that met Sunak on Friday said detail from the prime minister on a potential deal was "scant". Sinn Fein, the former political wing of the militant Irish Republican Army that wants Northern Ireland to split from the UK and unite with Ireland, became the province's largest party for the first time at elections last year.

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