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☆ The global synthetic drugs crisis has hit West Africa, where people are digging up human bones to make a drug called 'kush'
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-05 | by ( Rebecca Rommen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Cemeteries are bolstering their security measures because gravediggers are stealing human bones to make powerful synthetic drugs, local journalists told Business Insider. AdvertisementA vendor sells daily necessities at a market in Freetown, Sierra Leone, Feb. 21, 2024. Formaldehyde also has euphoric properties, says the National Library of Medicine, which explains why kush users could be raiding Freetown's cemeteries. JOHN WESSELS | Getty ImagesJalloh noted that the use of synthetic drugs was not unique to Sierra Leone. ReutersIn 2015, BI's Erin Brodwin covered the rise of these synthetic drugs, marketed as "spice," "K2," "black mamba," or "crazy clown."

Persons: —, Sierra, Julius Maada, Michael Cole, Sally Hayden, JOHN WESSELS, Cole, Mabinty Magdalene Kamar, Abdul Jalloh, HUGH KINSELLA CUNNINGHAM, Thomas Dixon, Jalloh, Salifu Kamara, kush, BI's Erin Brodwin, Brodwin, tranq Organizations: Service, Business, Xinhua News Agency, Getty, Anglia Ruskin University, The Irish Times, National Library of Medicine, Politico, Sierra, Sierra Leone Psychiatric Teaching Hospital, Police, Getty Images Local, Salone Times, BBC, Freetown Police Force, National Drug Agency, NPR, Guardian, Disease Control, Prevention, Reuters, Financial Times Locations: Freetown, African, Sierra Leone, West Africa, Mabinty, Waterloo , Sierra Leone, kush, New York City, New York, Kensington, North Philadelphia

☆ 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

☆ Why Ireland is the most pro-Palestinian nation in Europe
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-29 | by ( Eoin Mcsweeney | Niamh Kennedy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +15 min

“But like Palestine, (Ireland) had direct and sustained experience of imperialism,” she said. Mousa Salem/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images Palestinians transport bags of flour on the back of trucks as humanitarian aid arrives in Gaza City on March 6. Omar Qattaa/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images Palestinians wait to receive food at a refugee camp in Rafah on January 27. AFP/Getty Images Palestinian boy Ahmed Qannan, suffering from malnutrition, receives treatment at a health-care center in Rafah on March 4. Yasser Qudih/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images People in a crowd struggle to buy bread from a bakery in Rafah on February 18.

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu’s, Micheál Martin, Israel, “, Zoë Lawlor, ”, Jane Ohlmeyer, Leo Varadkar, ” Varadkar, Abdalmajid, Volker Turk, Ohlmeyer, Clodagh Kilcoyne, Ronald Storrs, Seán Gannon, Simon Harris, ” Israel, Amihai Eliyahu, Netanyahu, Dana Erlich, Emily Hand, Varadkar’s, Eli Cohen, Varadkar, Sinn Féin, Mary Lou McDonald, ” Matt Carthy, Sinn, ” Lawlor, Loay, Fadi, Kamal Adwan, Omar Qattaa, Saher, Ahmed Qannan, Mohammed Salem, Said Khatib, Dawoud Abo, Jehad, crouches, Abed Zagout, Yazan, Rabie Abu Noqaira, Mohammed Abed, Alexi J . Rosenfeld, Yasser Qudih, Fatima Shbair, Lawlor, Carthy Organizations: CNN —, Israel, International Court of Justice, Irish, Irish Palestine Solidarity, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland, “, CNN, Irish Free State, Republic of Ireland, Hamas, United Nations, Jewish, Republican Irish, European Union, West Bank, Newstalk, Irish Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Washington Post, Kamal, Anadolu Agency, Getty, AFP, UN, Reuters, US Air Force, UPI, Dawoud Abo Alkas, Amnesty, Irish Times, State Locations: CNN — Ireland, Ireland, Gaza, Israel, Gaza “, South Africa, Irish Palestine, Palestinian, Irish, Palestine, London, St, dispossession, Ulster, United Kingdom, Northern Ireland, Republic of, Dublin, Jerusalem, Jewish Ulster, Republic of Ireland, Ireland Ireland, Limerick, Rafah, Mousa Salem, Gaza City, AFP, Jordanian, Februrary

☆ Leo Varadkar: What was behind Irish PM’s shock resignation?
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-24 | by ( Niamh Kennedy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —Prime Minister Leo Varadkar sent shockwaves through Ireland when he candidly announced last week that he was “no longer the best person” to lead his country. Irish Times political correspondent Jennifer Bray was given less than an hour’s notice of the surprise statement from the taoiseach on Wednesday. His successor, largely tipped to be Higher Education Minister Simon Harris, will need to lead the center-right political party, Fine Gael, against a fired-up opposition. The 37-year-old who rose to prominence during his spell as health minister during the pandemic is considered by many to be a “mirror image” to Varadkar, Murphy said. Mary Lou McDonald, president of opposition party Sinn Fein, which has been making steady gains since 2020.

Persons: Leo Varadkar, Ireland’s, Varadkar, Joe Biden, Jennifer Bray, Bray, ” Gary Murphy, ”, ” Murphy, “, Simon Harris, Murphy, Varadkar “, Boris Johnson “, resoundingly, Nick Bradshaw, Paschal Donohoe, Harris, Tik Tok, “ Simon Harris, ” Bray, Mary Lou McDonald, Sinn Fein, Charles McQuillan, Sinn Féin Organizations: CNN —, Israel, Irish Times, Wednesday, CNN, Dublin City University, Higher Education, Fine Gael, Irish, Catholic Church Locations: shockwaves, Ireland, Gaza, Irish, Brussels, United Kingdom, Bray, Varadkar

☆ Michelin Guide history: How did a tire company become a restaurant rating guide?
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-10 | by ( Elisabeth Buchwald | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +14 min

Enter a pocket-sized red book known as the Michelin Guide. As a result, more French people had a desire to tour the country, making the Michelin Guide increasingly essential. The Michelin Guide now covers over 30,000 restaurants across three continents and more than 30 million guides have been sold. Addison is one of 13 three-star Michelin restaurants in the US and the only one in all of Southern California. A Michelin logo on a chef's uniform at the gala presentation of the Michelin Guide Spain on December 14, 2021.

Persons: André, Édouard Michelin, André Michelin, Édouard, Olivier Darmon, Guenter, ” Darmon, Darmon, ” William Bradley, Addison, William Bradley, Lauren di Matteo Addison, Bradley, ” Bradley, “, Roberto Alcocer, Christophe Bellanca, Christophe, Jordan Younis, Liz Clayman, Christophe Bellanca’s, they’re, Gwendal Poullennec, Richard Saker, Christophe Bellanca's, Alan Batt, ” Poullennec, Taylor Swift’s, Jorge Gil, Carbone, Jay, Kim Kardashian, Barack Obama, It’s, didn’t, Kevin Thornton’s, ” Thornton, Thornton, Michelin “, Bobby Yip, don’t, ’ ”, Alcocer, He’s, ” Bellanca Organizations: New, New York CNN, Michelin, Ferrand, Michelin Tire Company, Compagnie, des, Culture, AAA, CNN, Washington Post, Bellanca, Michelin Guides, Spain, Europa Press, Major Food Group, Irish Times, Conted, Reuters Locations: New York, Clermont, Paris, France, Europe, United States, San Diego, Southern California, Addison, Valle, Mexican, Oceanside, Oceanside , California, New York City, Cartmel, Cumbria, England, Kevin Thornton’s Dublin

☆ Where Has Tracy Chapman Been?
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-06 | by ( Ben Sisario | Heather Knight | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Despite some scattered performances on television and at awards shows, Chapman, 59, has remained almost entirely absent from the music world in recent years, having released her last studio album in 2008 and done her last tour in 2009. Since she first emerged in the late 1980s, she has always been known as a reclusive and private figure. But I am bit shy.”The acclaim for her Grammys performance — Taylor Swift could be seen singing along in the crowd — was a sign of how beloved Chapman remains. Combs’s note-for-note cover of “Fast Car” went to No. 2 on Billboard’s pop singles chart last year, and after the Grammys, Chapman’s original began shooting up iTunes’s download chart.

Persons: Tracy Chapman’s, Luke Combs —, Chapman, “, ”, — Taylor Swift, Chapman’s Organizations: Irish Times

That's right, we're here to show you where to watch the Six Nations live streams for free from anywhere in the world. If you don't have a proper watch option in your country, we'll show you how to watch Six Nations live streams for free using a VPN. Where to watch free Six Nations live streams from anywhereYou can catch all of the Six Nations action using a mix of ITVX and the BBC iPlayer in the United Kingdom, offering up every match between them. Or, if you have a VPN, you can watch all of the Six Nations matches for free using the UK options mentioned earlier. How to watch the Six Nations in AustraliaAustralian Six Nations live streams are on Stan, specifically the Sports tier, which with the required basic package underneath it, will run you AU$25 per month.

Persons: you'll, We'll, ExpressVPN, Stan, You'll Organizations: Nations, BBC, ITV1, Six Nations, ITV, USA NBC, Six, Australia Australian, Sports, Ireland, England, Wales, Scotland, France, – Wales Locations: Nations, France, Ireland, United Kingdom, USA, United States, Italy

☆ A remote Irish island is looking for 2 people to run its guesthouses this summer — but the managers say it isn't an easy holiday job
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-17 | by ( Marielle Descalsota | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Billy O'Connor and Alice Hayes told Business Insider that their company, The Great Blasket Island Experience, is hiring two caretakers to run their operations on Great Blasket Island from April 1 to October 1. The couple's company offers tours and accommodation on the Great Blasket Island. The Great Blasket Island is the largest. the couple told BI. Great Blasket Island can only be accessed during the summer.

Persons: —, Billy O'Connor, Alice Hayes, Emily Campbell, Daniel Regan, O'Connor, Hayes Organizations: Service, Business, The Irish Times, BI, Irish Times, Irish Locations: Ireland, Blasket, Canadian

DUBLIN, Nov 23 (Reuters) - Irish police said five people, including three young children, had been taken to hospital on Thursday following what local media said was a stabbing in Dublin city centre on Thursday. He added that he saw a man lying on his side but did not see the events before. One girl has sustained serious injuries and the other two children are being treated for less serious injuries, police said. An adult female is also being treated for serious injuries and an adult male has less serious injuries, police added. Local media reported that the people were stabbed on Dublin's Parnell Square, which is next to Dublin city's main thoroughfare of O'Connell Street.

Persons: Leo Varadkar, Anthony Boyle, Dublin's, Varadkar, Padraic Halpin, Conor Humphries, William James, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: DUBLIN, National, RTE, Reuters, Local, Irish Times, Alexandra Hudson Our, Thomson Locations: Dublin, O'Connell, Parnell

☆ Former pupils have called on a private school to apologize for hiring a former Nazi SS officer who abused students
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-14 | by ( Nathan Rennolds | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Former pupils at a school in Ireland are demanding an apology over a former WWII Nazi teacher's bullying. Louis Feutren worked as a French teacher at a Dublin school despite having been a Nazi collaborator. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . AdvertisementAdvertisementFormer pupils at a private school in Dublin, Ireland, are demanding that the institution apologize for a former teacher's bullying and physical abuse. Kieran Owens, a student at the school from 1966, told The Guardian that "no one would consider crossing" the French teacher.

Persons: Louis Feutren, —, Feutren, Bezen Perrot, Uki, Goñi, Kieran Owens, St Conleth's Organizations: Service, St Conleth's College, Guardian, Breton, Schutzstaffel, St Conleth's, Nazi, University of Galway, St, Irish Times, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Locations: Ireland, Nazi, Dublin, France, Wales, Feutren

☆ Ireland’s Latest Fiscal Headache: What to Do With 10 Billion Euros
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-15 | by ( Ed O Loughlin | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Which leaves Irish lawmakers in a quandary. As the government prepares its annual budget statement in October, it must settle the tricky question of what to do with this pot of money. Yet for peculiarly Irish reasons, none of these apparent boons would be, in itself, an easy option. “Whatever they do, it will leave some people feeling very grumpy,” said Cliff Taylor, a business columnist at The Irish Times. There is talk, he said, of putting the money aside in a sovereign wealth fund, to help support rising pension costs as the population ages.

Persons: ”, Cliff Taylor Organizations: The Irish Times Locations: Dublin

☆ Former Ireland coach Pauw says FAI 'undermined' her during World Cup
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Sept 1 (Reuters) - Former Ireland coach Vera Pauw said executives from the country's football association (FAI) undermined her position and interfered in football matters during the Women's World Cup. Dutch coach Pauw led Ireland to their first major tournament this year in Australia and New Zealand, where they exited in the group stage. Eileen Gleeson, FAI's head of women and girls' football, was appointed interim head coach. "Following the article ... which included allegations I absolutely refute, I believe the FAI made some major mistakes by directly overruling the tasks of the coach," Pauw said on Thursday in a statement cited by the Irish Times. "I believe that the review process which the association has carried out was flawed and that the outcome was pre-determined," Pauw added.

Persons: Vera Pauw, Pauw, Eileen Gleeson, FAI's, Houston Dash, Hritika Sharma, Peter Rutherford Organizations: FAI, Athletic, Houston, Irish Times, Thomson Locations: Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Hyderabad

☆ Bank of Ireland: Glitch allows customers to withdraw money they don't have
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-16 | by ( Hafsa Khalil | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —A technical fault meant that for several hours Tuesday customers of one of Ireland’s biggest banks could withdraw funds they did not have. The BOI has said sorry for the incident, which saw queues form as people scrambled to exploit the fault, and which also meant some customers couldn’t access their accounts. How are people meant to buy food or other necessities if our cards won’t even work or [we] can’t check our bank balances? In June, the Irish lender faced difficulties, with the loss of some services which some customers were quick to bring up Tuesday. Has Bank of Ireland no contingency plan?” read one comment.

Persons: ” “, ”, “ Haven’t Organizations: CNN, Bank of, Irish Times, Twitter, Bank of Ireland

[1/3] A man looks at an artwork depicting Irish singer Sinead O'Connor, who died at the age of 56, known for her chart-topping hit 'Nothing Compares 2 U', in Dublin, Ireland, July 27, 2023. REUTERS/Damien StoranDUBLIN, July 27 (Reuters) - Ireland on Thursday mourned the death of Sinead O'Connor, the singer who was remembered for a stirring voice that stopped people in their tracks on stage and told uncomfortable truths off it. O'Connor, best known for the 1990 chart-topping hit "Nothing Compares 2 U", died on Wednesday aged 56 after police found her unresponsive at an address in London. "My mam rang me last night and she said did you hear about Sinead and she didn't even have to say the second name. She gave two fingers to the church, who at that time in the 90s had such a hold over Ireland.

Persons: Sinead O'Connor, Damien Storan DUBLIN, O'Connor, Michael D, Higgins, Sinead, Michelle Beatty, Una Mullally, O'Connor's, Pope John Paul II, Stephen Faloon, Graham Fahy, Padraic Halpin, William Maclean Organizations: REUTERS, Metropolitan Police, Dublin, Ireland, Irish Times, Thomson Locations: Dublin, Ireland, London, Bray , County Wicklow

☆ Google is testing a new AI tool that can write news articles and reportedly pitching it to The New York Times and News Corp
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-20 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Google is pitching news organizations on its new AI tool for journalists, per the NYT. Some executives were unsettled by the AI, but Google says it can't replace journalists. Google is testing an AI tool known as "Genesis" that can write news articles, The New York Times first reported. They said the company wanted to enhance journalists' productivity in the same way that AI tools are becoming available in Gmail and Google Docs. That includes The New York Times, Insider, and Gannett — the largest newspaper publisher in the US.

Persons: didn't, we're, Europe's Organizations: Google, Morning, New York Times, Times, Washington Post, News Corp, Street, The Times, Gmail, Gannett, The Irish Times, Guardian Locations: London, newsrooms

☆ A Russian missile strike killed a Ukrainian author who began documenting Russia's war crimes after the invasion
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-03 | by ( Katie Hawkinson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Victoria Amelina died July 1 following a Russian missile strike in the city of Kramatorsk. Amelina wrote two novels throughout her life and began writing poetry soon after the Russian war in Ukraine began. "But I document Russia's war crimes and listen to the sound of shelling, not poems." She received a grant in 2022 from Documenting Ukraine — a research project dedicated to documenting personal stories during the Russian war in Ukraine, according to their website — to complete the project. The work records the stories of female civil society leaders amid the war, according to Documenting Ukraine.

Persons: Victoria Amelina, Amelina, —, Amelina —, Sergio Jaramillo, Colombia's, " Jaramillo, Volodymyr Vakulenko — Organizations: Service, BBC, Financial Times, Twitter, Victoria, Irish Times, Kharkiv Literary Locations: Russian, Kramatorsk, Ukraine, Ukrainian

☆ Parents in a town in Ireland came together to voluntarily ban smartphones for kids as old as 13
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-04 | by ( Zoe Rosenberg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Parents in Greystones, Ireland, have implemented a smartphone ban for primary school-aged kids. The hope is that the ban will help prolong childhood by lessening the anxiety and exposure to adult materials that smartphone usage often eggs on. It makes it so much easier to say no," Laura Bourne, whose child is in primary school, told The Guardian. The impacts of smartphone usage on kids is becoming an increasing concern as ongoing studies seek to analyze any lasting effects on the brain. Meanwhile, a town in India has banned smartphone usage for all under the age of 18, according to the Times of India.

Persons: Laura Bourne, Rachel Harper, Stephen Donnelly, — Organizations: Guardian, Irish Times, National Institutes of Health, Times Locations: Greystones, Ireland, Dublin, India, Times of India

☆ A secret Cold War-era deal lets British jets shadow Russian bombers when they fly near a vital Atlantic chokepoint
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Michael Peck | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Since the 1950s, Ireland has allowed British jets to intercept Russian aircraft near Irish airspace. Irish Air Corps PC-9s fly by an Irish navy patrol vessel in August 2006. SaabThe Irish military has a few short-range RBS-70 surface-to-air missiles that can reach 16,000 feet, backed by Giraffe search radars. Mulqueen said that official Irish and British statements suggest British pilots could intercept intruders but not actually shoot at them. Should Sinn Fein take power in the future, it would be responsible for Ireland's security, including its air defense.

☆ An Irish newspaper published a hoax article calling false tan 'problematic' generated using ChatGPT by a fake journalist with a profile picture made on DALL-E
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Last Thursday, The Irish Times removed an opinion article which called fake tan "problematic." It was 80% generated by GPT-4, and the hoaxer used an AI profile picture, per The Guardian. A hoax newspaper article which was generated with AI by a troll using a DALL-E profile picture has prompted an apology from the editor, The Guardian reported. The Irish Times published the piece, titled "Irish women's obsession with fake tan is problematic," on Thursday. And the profile picture was created with DALL-E to show a stereotypically "woke" journalist with the prompt "female, overweight, blue hair, business casual clothing, smug expression."

☆ The 'Robinhood of passports' says it's a mistake to ban golden visas — make them fund affordable housing and refugee programs instead
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Hannah Towey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Portugal and Ireland recently announced they are shutting down their "golden visa" programs. Their less-advantageous siblings, "golden visas," provide temporary residence permits in exchange for investment, as opposed to permanent citizenship. A golden taxInstead of banning golden passports and visas outright, countries should adjust the investment requirements to match their current needs, Arton says. A scandalous historyBut golden passports don't only raise the issue of inequality, the European Commission argues, they also pose a threat to national security. Last year, 282 of Ireland's 306 golden visa applications came from Chinese citizens, The Irish Times reported.

☆ Zara founder buys luxury apartment building in Dublin for $108 million
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MADRID, March 31 (Reuters) - Spanish billionaire and Zara founder Amancio Ortega has bought a luxury residential building with 120 apartments for rent in Dublin, Ireland, for around 100 million euros ($108 million), his private firm Pontegadea said on Friday. It is the first residential building that Ortega's firm has bought outside the United States, Pontegadea said, adding it was part of its strategy to invest in multiple real estate assets. The Opus 6 Hanover Quay building is at the heart of Silicon Docks, the nickname for Dublin's business and technology district, and offers luxury apartments and townhouses for long-term rent, according to the building's website. Pontegadea has focused on investing in real estate assets worldwide and in Spain's energy infrastructure. ($1 = 0.9189 euros)Reporting by Corina Pons Editing by David Latona and Mark PotterOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Fact Check-Fabricated Irish Independent headline on anti-racism rally circulates online
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A fabricated screenshot purporting to show a headline published by The Irish Independent on an anti-racism rally held in Dublin in mid-February has been circulating online. Thousands took part in the ‘Ireland For All’ rally in Dublin city centre on Feb. 18 in solidarity with migrants and refugees. Reports published by The Irish Times and RTE News, organisers estimated that 50,000 people took part (here), (here). A Google advanced search did not reveal the headline published via the Irish Independent (archive.is/wip/BVmIv). No such headline was published by The Irish Independent.

☆ Wealthy Americans are racing to get the EU's last remaining 'golden passport' before it's gone
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( Hannah Towey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

For the first time, Americans are applying for "golden passports" more than any other nationality. For the first time, Americans are applying for golden passports and visas more than any other nationality, according to Henley & Partners' 2023 USA Wealth Report, released Thursday. Henley & Partners' Head of North America Mehdi Kadiri said Malta's golden passport scheme was the second-most sought-after program among Americans, in part because Malta's program is accessible through real estate investment. Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt reportedly applied for European citizenship in 2020 through Cyprus' now-defunct golden passport program. Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, golden passports and visas faced global scrutiny for allowing sanctioned oligarchs access to the UK.

☆ When a weather balloon went rogue almost 25 years ago, fighter jets fired 1,000 rounds at it and couldn't bring it down
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-03 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

About 25 years ago, a rogue weather balloon wouldn't come down after over 1,000 rounds were fired at it. Balloons, like the suspected Chinese "spy balloon" over the US, don't always pop or explode when shot. Two Royal Canadian Air Force CF-18 fighter aircraft spotted the balloon over Newfoundland and fired more than 1,000 rounds at it. The balloon, BBC reported, also survived encounters with British and American aircraft. According to BBC reports from the time of the incident, the 300-ft helium balloon prompted air traffic controllers to divert and delay transatlantic flights.

☆ Ireland toasts record Oscar success with 14 nominations
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Mario AnzuoniDUBLIN, Jan 24 (Reuters) - Ireland celebrated a record 14 Oscar nominations on Tuesday, scooping five of the 20 acting spots up for grabs and for the first time earning a nod for a feature film made in the native Irish language. "Congratulations to all the Irish Oscar nominations. Ireland was also well represented in the craft categories, including best visual effects and editing while former winner Martin McDonagh added to his growing Oscar CV with best director and best original screenplay nods for "Banshees." "There was perhaps a notion out there that to make a film in the Irish language was a dead end creatively or commercially. "There's no reason that Irish language filmmakers should limit their ambitions, they should be making films for the world."

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