€380,000 cannabis seizure at Dublin Port
Cannabis with an estimated street value of €380,000 was seized yesterday at Dublin Port.
The discovery of around 19kg of the drug was made following an intelligence-led operation by Revenue officers and gardaí.
The drugs were discovered, with assistance from Revenue's sniffer dog Meg, in a trailer that had disembarked a ferry from Rotterdam.
Former head of Irish Life & Permanent, Denis Casey, has been excused from attending the Banking Inquiry following the intervention of the Director of Public Prosecutions.
Mr Casey was due to give evidence on Thursday. The DPP wrote to the Inquiry last week to express serious concerns that hearing from Mr Casey could prejudice future prosecutions.
At a private meeting today, the Inquiry has withdrawn the requirement for Mr Casey to attend and will also not publish his witness statement.
Casey excused from Banking Inquiry
Head of Irish Life & Permanent Denis Casey has been excused from attending the Banking Inquiry following the intervention of the Director of Public Prosecutions.
Mr Casey was due to give evidence on Thursday. The DPP wrote to the Inquiry last week to express serious concerns that hearing from Mr Casey could prejudice future prosecutions.
At a private meeting today, the Inquiry has withdrawn the requirement for him to attend and will also not publish his witness statement.
LÉ James Joyce sets sail
A new naval vessel has been commissioned and named after renowned Irish writer James Joyce, at a ceremony at Carlisle Pier, in Dún Laoghaire, Dublin.
LÉ James Joyce is the newest of the eight ships of naval service. It will be assigned to offshore patrols, and has special capabilities to deploy mini submarines used for underwater searches.
A number of James Joyce's family members were at the ceremony, and the ship's captain Lieutenant Commander Brian Dempsey was presented with a special edition copy of Ulysses, 1 of just 100.
James Joyce's grandniece Carol Joyce led the traditional ceremony of breaking a bottle of champagne on the ship's hull, accompanied by Taoiseach Enda Kenny and Minister Simon Coveney.
Man seriously injured in slash-hook attack in Mullingar
One man has been seriously injured and several others involved in a row in Mullingar in Co Westmeath.
It is understood the man was brought to Midland Regional Hospital Mullingar after he was struck with a slash-hook just before midnight.
Gardaí were called to deal with a dispute apparently linked to an ongoing Travellers' feud in the area.
The incident follows a number of disturbances in recent days.
Cork tech firm to create 25 jobs
A research company which develops technology for the building and aerospace industries has said it plans to create 25 jobs in Cork.
United Technologies already employs 40 researchers and scientists in the city.
The company says the new jobs will be in the areas of electronics, diagnostics and data analytics, controls, aircraft systems engineering and embedded systems.
United Technologies established a research centre in Cork in 2010.
The company is based in the US and employs 600 people worldwide.
Dutch government to appeal court ruling on greenhouse gases
The Dutch government has said it would appeal against a court ruling ordering it to cut greenhouse gases across the country by 25% by 2020.
The June judgment had been hailed as a "milestone" by climate experts after 900 Dutch citizens went to court in a bid to force a reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.
But Dutch leaders fear the court decision could have wide implications for their policies.
Environmental rights group Urgenda, which brought the case in April, had said it wanted The Hague to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40% over 1990 levels by 2020.
Current Dutch policy is to reduce emissions by 17% by 2020, against the 25-40% international norm for industrialised nations, the court said.
Death toll in Spain fireworks factory explosion rises to six
The death toll from an explosion at a fireworks factory in northeastern Spain rose to six after police found a body in the ruins of the plant, local authorities said.
Six people were in hospital, half of them in serious or very serious condition, following the blast yesterday at the factory on the outskirts of Zaragoza near the city's airport, a regional government spokesman said.
The cause of the explosion was unknown.
Founded in 1860, the Pirotecnia Zaragozana company employs over 40 people and exports fireworks mostly to Europe and Canada, according to its website. The company was purchased in January 2015 by French firm Etienne Lacroix.
August is a busy time for fireworks factories in Spain as many small towns celebrate religious festivals at this time of the year with fireworks shows.
Suicide bomber kills six in NW Pakistan
A suicide bomber killed at least six people and wounded 31 others when he blew himself up outside a local government office in a northwestern Pakistani tribal area today, officials said.
The bombing took place in the town of Jamrud, in the Khyber tribal district bordering Afghanistan, where the military has been battling Taliban and Islamist groups.
The Pakistani Taliban claimed the attack in a statement on their website.
Pakistan has been waging a major offensive against insurgent hideouts in the tribal northwest for over a year in a bid to quell an Islamist insurgency that has raged for more than a decade.
