Wednesday 21 October 2026Lunchtime (Europe/Dublin)
DailyBotThe lunchtime paper
Lunchtime edition
20 stories
Putin has ordered the release of a jailed American as he met Trump's envoy for Ukraine talks; Russia unilaterally freed Stephen Hubbard after a US request, while Steve Witkoff praised Putin as a 'humanitarian'.
Live: Trump has hailed Russia's release of US teacher Stephen Hubbard amid Witkoff's visit, claiming the US was not required to give anything in return 'out of respect for President Trump'.
The US has resumed sharing intelligence with Ukraine about Russian strikes, Zelenskyy says; advance warnings of missile attacks were seemingly suspended last week by the White House, but 'now it works'.
Republicans are pushing back on Donald Trump's wavering support for Ukraine; GOP lawmakers threaten to pull support for the president's agenda after a Russia diesel deal and a sanctions pause.
Ukraine war briefing: US envoy Witkoff is to meet Putin after 'constructive' talks with Zelenskyy; talks in Oslo made 'meaningful progress' toward engaging Russia, a US official said - what we know on day 1,701.
Live: Macron has blasted 'unacceptable' and 'stupid' commentary on the protests from US figures, as the Europe live blog covers Witkoff's Putin meeting and the fallout from France's riots.
'A powerful warning': will Europe's angry protests lead to real political change? Hamstrung governments seem to have no answer to the public's furious demands, making further discontent likely.
Reader Q&A: what's next for France after a weekend of riots? Guardian Europe columnists Rokhaya Diallo and Alexander Hurst will take readers' questions live on Friday 23 October.
Why are French police so violent? Their job is to protect the state, not the people - officers are instruments of state whose job is to repress, rather than manage, public dissent.
In pictures: from Paris to Porto, from Tirana to Milan - violent demonstrations have rocked Europe as protesters call for action over university conditions, tuition fees, corruption, housing and the cost of living.
Helen Haines has lost both legs after the alleged attack but 'her heart and mind are in good shape'; surgeons tried to save her right leg but both have now been amputated, and she is in a stable condition.
No bail for Helen Haines' alleged attacker as the police chief warns of Australia's 'febrile' political climate; the AFP commissioner says MPs are generally concerned about the growing volume of abuse and intimidation.
The world must cut emissions by 18% in four years 'to find our way back', the UN says; action is needed to avoid a disastrous overshoot of climate targets, according to the organisation's environment body.
Nigeria has confirmed an Ebola case as the outbreak spreads into western Africa; the case in Africa's most populous country was detected in a woman who had travelled from Uganda.
RFK Jr's 'deities of vaccine research' have been raided by police in Guinea-Bissau; police seized doses of hepatitis B vaccine from people at the centre of a dispute over research on African newborns.
A fifth foreign firm has pulled out of the controversial Israeli cable car project to East Jerusalem; rights groups say the planned 1.4km route, ending at a compound run by a far-right settler group, will displace Palestinians.
The battle over Meta's alleged Bolsonaro bias is intensifying days before Brazil's presidential runoff; Lula's supporters suspect tech firm meddling on behalf of Donald Trump, who has close ties to the Bolsonaro family.
Flavio Bolsonaro's 'corrupto' stunt has sparked a viral meme before Brazil's election runoff: the far-right presidential candidate's TV debate swipe at his rival backfired as people took to social media to parody it.
Sanae Takaichi took on Japan's male-dominated politics and won - can she survive a second year? The straight-talking PM's ability to manage Trump and stand up to China has endeared her to the public.
The mystery of a Roman sarcophagus unearthed at Westminster Abbey has been solved at last, an expert says: the skeleton in the coffin inscribed to Valerius Amandinus is likely an 11th-century abbot.
22 stories
Two bodies have been discovered at a residential property in Wicklow; a man in his 30s and a woman in her 40s were pronounced dead at Old Connaught Avenue, Bray.
Orange weather warnings for 'intense rain' have been issued as Storm Austen approaches, with Met Eireann upgrading its alerts as the track of the storm becomes clearer.
Tell Me About It: 'I am married with two kids, but I drunkenly embraced a colleague at a work party' - 'I get along very well with her, but I had never thought about her in a romantic context.'
Booking.com is under investigation over fraudulent listings concerns; the European Commission is to carry out an 'in-depth investigation' as a matter of priority.
'We are abandoned': a Ukrainian family with permission to stay but nowhere to go; Fiona Dunne and Anna Polyshchuk have become friends, but the Co Laois woman had not anticipated sharing her home for four years.
The criminal courts are operating, but not 'effectively', as Jim O'Callaghan claims; the Minister has offered to meet solicitors as the legal aid dispute sees case backlogs rise.
Jim O'Callaghan has reiterated his claim that solicitors are targeting rape cases; the Minister faces a backlash for saying rape trials were the only cases 'deliberately' targeted by striking solicitors.
Tusla plans to reduce the number of children it takes into special care; in a recent case, a 14-year-old girl was given drugs and sexually exploited by several adult men.
Two women and a man have been arrested over the petrol bomb murders of an English family in Waterford city; the man (50s) and two women in their 30s were held in the latest phase of the inquiry.
'Nowhere left to go': a beluga whale off Ireland amid growing sightings of Arctic species - 'It is mad to think that now we have a species of whale in Irish waters that is the food of polar bears.'
Chinese cars in Ireland: with an ever-expanding roster of Chinese brands entering the Irish car market, here is a rundown of each one and what it sells.
Moving back to Ireland: so much is different and so much is still the same - but after a year home, there's still a part that wonders what life would be like if we had stayed in London.
Wildwood review: five stars for a stop-motion wonder destined to become a classic for the ages - in an age of safe sequels and reboots, Laika Studios deserve credit for taking a swing.
In the News podcast: what happens when an out-of-control teenager is your son?
A man has been killed in a single-vehicle crash in Mayo; the incident occurred on the N5 at Lisgormin, Bohola, at approximately 5.15am.
An IT firm is seeking up to 30m euro from Irish Rail for a scrapped technology project; Irish Rail will tell an Oireachtas committee it terminated the contract for a new traffic management system in July.
Opinion: the Annals of Inisfallen are part of Irish history and don't belong in a British library - former colonies are increasingly seeking the return of their ancestral heritage, and the Annals are part of ours.
A man has been charged following the seizure of 1.7m euro worth of cocaine in Dublin, with separate arrests made in a drug intimidation inquiry.
The Government wants the HSE to cap hospital parking fees at 10 euro a day; the Minister told a Dail committee the health service will carry out a new national review of charges.
Phil Hogan would seek Donald Trump's help to restore the grain corridor; the former commissioner is bidding to lead the UN food agency and increase its involvement in talks with Russia and Ukraine.
Kathy Sheridan: when words fail, we still turn to the priest to find them - in some of the loneliest moments of our lives, we trust in the wisdom of a priest, born of years spent attending scenes of human devastation.
Sean Moncrieff: I've been emailing obscure academics seeking radio interviews. Except I haven't - I've been impersonated online, but how long before we can't spot a fake?
14 stories
The DUP's Jim Shannon has claimed an IRA man 'deserved to be shot dead' during a legacy debate; the MP also suggested relatives of Colum Marks should not pursue an inquiry into his death.
'He'd help anyone in need': former world champion boxer Michael Conlan gave a character reference for his brother-in-law Martin O'Lali Jr, who was sentenced to two years and seven months for causing a death by dangerous driving.
A Co Armagh man allegedly carried out 'opportunistic' sexual assaults on two young girls in a leisure centre; the 43-year-old faces other allegations including breaches of a Sexual Offences Prevention Order.
Snooker's Mark Allen has opened up about his mental health clinic stay after an emotional TV interview in which he said he was 'just trying to survive at the minute'.
A British soldier shot in a gun battle with IRA hunger striker Francis Hughes has spoken for the first time; Hughes later died during the 1981 hunger strike.
Who is the cheapest electricity supplier in Northern Ireland? An analysis of 32 domestic electricity tariffs ranks the cheapest to most expensive, and how much you could save by switching.
Brian Feeney: Drumcree was Gavin Robinson's chance to lead. Instead, he chose to follow - if you fail to distinguish yourself from more vociferous rivals, voters will vote for the real thing.
A motorcyclist travelled at over 90mph and did 'wheelies' during a Lurgan police chase; a man was arrested on suspicion of offences including dangerous driving.
DUP party politics versus hard facts: government ministers have clashed over the delivery of integrated education, with Naomi Long linking policy to party politics as Paul Givan claims to introduce a 'dose of reality'.
Wage growth in Northern Ireland has fallen below inflation, but pensioners are set to benefit from higher payments; the median monthly wage in the north fell below CPI inflation for only the second time in a year.
Alex Kane: unionism needs a strategy, not another wrecking ball - if there is a credible plan for a post-Assembly alternative, then just put it on paper.
An Orange Order Portadown parade involving up to 15,000 people this weekend has been deemed 'not sensitive'; the 'support' parade and rally comes after Orangemen were banned from the nationalist Garvaghy Road.
'My advice to would-be authors? Start writing': Belfast crime novelist Neil Walker outlines his path to becoming an author and offers advice for those toying with book ideas of their own.
The Irish News view: the Orange Order is ignoring the clear message of ordinary unionists - many unionists, and practically every significant voice within other traditions, could see the enormous dangers in reviving a Drumcree dispute.
34 stories
Sinn Fein MP Chris Hazzard eyes a shock Stormont switch in a high-stakes bid to make history in Strangford - a decision that is a blow to the chances of an SDLP breakthrough.
'The crowd was solemn and still': the day two men were executed in a grim public spectacle in Belfast.
An NI department store has been crowned best in the UK after beating John Lewis and Harrods; Wardens of Newtownards has been in business for nearly 150 years.
Students and teachers have marched through the Greek capital in protest over the cost of living.
The National Express owner is in talks over a 282m pound takeover deal.
Ministers are looking at removing standing charges from gas bills, Andy Burnham says.
Actor Noel Clarke has pleaded not guilty to sexual offence charges.
Analysis: Sinn Fein's high-stakes gamble in a staunchly unionist constituency may not be the big risk it seems.
The PSNI is investigating a report of a former Tory MP 'identifying Jeffrey Donaldson's victims online'; the paedophile was sentenced to 15 years in jail last week.
'There was a horrific bang... I could smell the airbags': dashcam footage has been played at the A5 crash inquest, which heard a head-on collision between a minibus and an HGV caused the deaths of three family members.
A letter from convicted paedophile Jeffrey Donaldson tells of the comfort he finds in the Bible in the days before sentencing.
Jeffrey Donaldson will have to serve 2,741 days behind bars as his release date is revealed; outrage as the child rapist gets the automatic half-off jail term.
Comment: Jeffrey Donaldson's incessant trips to the developing world raise dark new questions - the DUP leader visited an African country ten times in under three years, helped flog weapons alongside a British general, and worked with a special forces officer.
From kimchi to chorizo: how pupils at one south Belfast primary school are embracing adventurous eating, in a pilot scheme designed to widen children's palates.
Premium: I don't mean to scare you, but 2030 is three years and two months away - three things learned about travel at a big-shot transatlantic summit in Dublin, and a refreshing 'word of the year'.
Applegreen has announced a new M&S partnership at a Co Down petrol station.
Portadown District's offers to secure a Drumcree deal have been revealed, as a 10,000-person rally is set for the town - follow live coverage of the Drumcree dispute.
Analysis: an unexplained aspect of police intelligence over dissidents at Drumcree may help bring understanding; further information on the policing of Drumcree is expected on day two of the Orange Order case.
A judge is to rule next week on the Orange Order challenge over the banned Drumcree march.
Emerald Airlines boss: 'We'll tender for the Dublin-Derry route when we get the opportunity.'
Analysis: the legal battle over the Garvaghy Road parade may clarify the law on public processions but leaves the politics untouched - the ruling should clear up important legal points but does not solve the situation outside the courtroom.
Coffee shop chain Bob and Berts has reported more than 24m pounds in revenue.
'My biggest fear is knowing I have to leave my daughter behind': a Belfast mum who gave her time to others.
Ask a money coach: 'My husband wants to retire early, but I don't think we can afford it' - he plans to use his tax-free lump sum and some shared savings to buy a doer-upper.
A 67m pound public subsidy bid has been revealed as NI fights rivals for a 400m pound Ryanair hub with 600 new jobs; the airline's maintenance, repair and overhaul hub stands to produce 600 high-quality jobs.
Comment: 'The Yank' memoir suggests the IRA was less sophisticated than was believed, and its long war fought differently.
A failure to isolate NI care home patients during the pandemic caused 'significant risk', the Covid Inquiry has heard; almost 5,000 patients were discharged to care facilities in the first half of 2020.
Melanie Finn: women like Joanne McNally should not have to pay the price when men like Conor McGregor misbehave - the comedian hit back at criticism of her decision to appear on a US chat show that soft-soaped the disgraced fighter.
A far-right rioter is homeless after fleeing Coleraine following a UDA gun attack; the ringleader of an anti-immigration group blamed the media for his troubles rather than his own behaviour.
Restaurant review: a celebrity favourite is one of the best Chinese restaurants in Belfast.
Comment: why Andy Burnham could be the longest-serving PM since Blair.
'A Course Called Ireland' review: Bill Murray's shambolic golf trip around Ireland and Northern Ireland - the star seems to be having a good time, but does little to ensure viewers have one too.
Families of GAA fans murdered by the Glenanne Gang have seen their case adjourned until January after new evidence emerged.
Sinn Fein MP Pat Cullen is to run in the Assembly election as the party bids to take two seats in South Belfast and Mid Down; the former nursing chief joins Deirdre Hargey on the Stormont ticket.