Former justice minister Alan Shatter said he has been the target of a vicious and antisemitic smear campaign since Social Democrats justice spokesman Gary Gannon put up a social media post that linked him with Jeffrey Epstein. Mr Shatter, who was Fine Gael's justice minister from 2011 to 2014, said he has twice written to Mr Gannon and Social Democrats leader Holly Cairns in the last week seeking the withdrawal of false claims that he met Epstein while in office.
"Many of my first-time visitors naturally wish to see the world-famous landmarks like the Colosseum, the Vatican, and the Pantheon," Dino Margiotta, a licensed tour guide, a Ph.D. in history, and a ToursByLocals Golden Guide 2025 "Lifetime Achievement" winner, tells Travel + Leisure. "While these are undoubtedly iconic, they are also among the most crowded places in the city. Yet, just a short distance away, it is possible to discover the true essence of the Eternal City and immerse yourself in centuries of history."
Portugal votes on Sunday in a second-round presidential election to pick a successor to conservative President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa for the largely ceremonial figurehead position. Polls will open at 8 a.m. local time/UTC/GMT on the mainland for about 11 million eligible voters to cast their ballots in a historic runoff the first in 40 years and only the second since democracy was restored in 1974.
Immanuel Feyi-Waboso has been ruled out of England's pursuit of the triple crown while Steve Borthwick has concerns over the fitness of Ellis Genge for the Calcutta Cup on Saturday. Feyi-Waboso pulled out of the 48-7 victory against Wales after sustaining a hamstring injury in training last Friday and was replaced by Tom Roebuck. According to Borthwick, the Exeter winger will be out for a number of weeks, ensuring he misses the trip to Murrayfield and the visit of Ireland to Twickenham a week later.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin has vowed that he will lead Fianna Fáil into the next general election, and insisted he won't be stepping down as leader when Simon Harris becomes taoiseach next year. After a turbulent year for his party, Mr Martin appears to have warded off any threats of a heave against him, following a disastrous presidential election campaign in which his chosen candidate, Jim Gavin, withdrew from the race.
It is pre-dawn in the historic Podil district of the Ukraine capital, Kyiv, and warm light from the Spelta bakery-bistro's window pierces the darkness outside. On a wooden surface dusted with flour, the baker Oleksandr Kutsenko skilfully divides and shapes soft, damp pieces of dough. As he shoves the first loaves into the oven, a sweet, delicate aroma of fresh bread fills the space.
Germany and the European Union must fundamentally rethink their relationship with the United States, the center-left Social Democratic Party (SPD) advocates, as President Donald Trump's approach to international affairs raises doubts about the US's reliability as a partner and ally. The SPD, the junior coalition member in Chancellor Friedrich Merz's conservative-led government, argues in a policy paper set to be adopted by the party executive board that Germany must carry out a realistic reassessment of the trans-Atlantic relationship.
Ukrainian officials said at least three people were killed in overnight Russian strikes that targeted residential buildings in the eastern city of Kramatorsk. The February 8 attacks included heavy "glide" bombs, officials said, weapons that Russia has used to devastate both Ukrainian frontline positions as well as residential areas. Nearly 20 people were injured in the early morning attacks, the National Police said. In total, Russia fired more than 400 drones and missile at locations across the country, President Volodymy Zelenskyy said.
"My mother and sisters were killed on that day. For 26 years, I have not known where their bodies are buried. Every time I see a pit, I think they might be lying there," Gashi says. For more than two decades, he has been haunted by the feeling that the truth could lie right beneath his feet, but remains out of reach.
Weather alerts were lifted for 13 counties yesterday, but emergency services stressed that the flooding threat will not ease for a number of days. The levels of the Rivers Liffey, Slaney, Nore, Suir, Barrow and Blackwater remain high, with pressure mounting on ESB to sanction releases from major reservoirs including Poulaphouca, which are near capacity and potentially adding to the flooding challenge.
Before the campaign was all but officially interrupted by two deadly and destructive storms, some conservative figures in the country had staged a rare display of apparent unity by declaring their support for Seguro in an attempt to head off the possibility of a far-right presidency. Others, including Portugal's centre-right prime minister, Luis Montenegro, have refused to throw their weight behind the socialist.
The EU-India comprehensive framework of cooperation on mobility' aims to facilitate the mobility of skilled workers, young professionals and seasonal workers in shortage sectors while promoting research and innovation, the Commission says. As migration policy is national competence, it will only apply to interested EU Member States. The mobility deal includes provisions to support skills development and compare skills and qualification frameworks especially in critical tech areas.
Fierce fighting continues on the front line between Russian and Ukrainian forces despite the frigid winter temperatures, said Ukraine's Commander in Chief Oleksandr Syrskii, who stated the front line now stretches about 1,200km (750 miles) in length along eastern and southern parts of Ukraine. Increasing technological improvements in drone warfare on both sides of the conflict mean that the so-called kill zone where troops are in greatest danger on the front line is now up to 20km (12 miles) deep, Syrskii told reporters.
Emma Raducanu missed the chance to win her first title since her US Open triumph in 2021 after losing in straight sets to home favourite Sorana Cirstea in the Transylvania Open final. Raducanu, the top seed, appeared to be feeling the effects of her marathon semi-final win against Ukraine's Oleksandra Oliynykova on Friday, falling to Cirstea 6-0, 6-2 in little over an hour in Cluj. Romanian Cirstea, 35 and in her final year on the Tour, sealed the fourth WTA title of her 20-year career.
I suppose every part of me, I wasn't well, I was physically drained, I had lost loads of weight, I wasn't sleeping, and it crept up on me very quickly. I'd had some kind of virally things, but didn't think they were significant until I was hit with this. I suppose it was like a bolt from the blue, where I was knocked sideways and couldn't keep going.
Russian missiles and drones struck Ukrainian power plants and electricity networks overnight on February 7, triggering rolling blackouts and renewing pressure on a grid already battered by weeks of attacks, Ukrainian authorities said. Energy Minister Denys Shmyhal said that the government has instituted emergency nationwide power shutdowns of the electricity grid across the country. Kyiv also requested emergency assistance from Poland after Russia hit the Burshtynska and Dobrotvirska power plants in western Ukraine overnight.
As tensions simmer between the European Union and the U.S. over the Trump administration's trade policies and its play for Greenland, we've been hearing about the EU's economic "bazooka." What is it? AILSA CHANG, HOST: Things are quite tense right now between the U.S. and the European Union. Sources of that tension include the Trump administration's trade policies and its play for Greenland, which, in turn, has led to talk about the EU's anticoercion mechanism, also known as its economic bazooka.
