Yvonne Murray

in New York

Private Sean Rooney is pictured in an army uniform with a blue beret in front of a tank with UNIFIL markings

UN welcomes sentencing in Seán Rooney murder case

Both the UN and the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) has welcomed the conviction and sentencing in the case of the killing of Private Seán Rooney in Lebanon in 2022.

Ireland • 29 Jul

Attendees stand during a moment of silence during a ministerial high level meeting during the United Nations conference on a two state solution for Israel and the Palestinians, at UN headquarters on July 28, 2025, in New York City. Ever since the partitio

Delayed UN meeting to discuss two-state solution begins

A delayed conference to promote the two-state solution for Israel and Palestine has opened at the United Nations in New York.

Middle East • 28 Jul

Israel bypasses UN already struggling for relevance

Israel is sidelining the United Nations which is already in deep financial crisis and struggling for relevance, as wars rage around the world. What does it all mean for the UN's future?

Analysis and Comment • 26 Jul

Palestinians gather at an aid distribution point set up by the privately-run Gaza Humanitarian Foundation

Gaza aid group vows to keep operating despite killings

More than 600 Palestinians have been killed and more than 4,000 wounded attempting to access aid from the Israel and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, according to international NGOs, writes Yvonne Murray.

Analysis and Comment • 06 Jul

Maxar satellite imagery provides a wide overview of the Fordow nuclear complex in Iran, which was bombed by the US

Who is going to inspect Iran's nuclear sites now?

Following US and Israeli attacks on Iran's nuclear sites, Tehran is considering withdrawing from the UN's nuclear non-proliferation treaty and ejecting inspectors from the country. What will this mean for international oversight of Iran's nuclear programme as well as the world's nuclear safeguards?

Analysis and Comment • 29 Jun

The Atomic Bomb Dome in the centre of Hiroshima

What is the nuclear world order and how did we get here?

US and Israeli strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities have reignited the debate over nuclear weapons. But what is the nuclear world order we live in and how did we get here?

Analysis and Comment • 22 Jun

How has the handling of Iran's nuclear programme changed?

For decades, the international community has wrung its hands over Iran's nuclear programme, fretting over the Islamic dictatorship's potential to build a bomb.

Analysis and Comment • 17 Jun

BUSHEHR, IRAN - APRIL 28: A view of Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant, the country's only nuclear power plant, in Bushehr, Iran on April 28, 2024. Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant, which is one of the nuclear facilities that is frequently mentioned in international

Watch: Iran's nuclear ambitions in focus amid tensions

RTÉ's global security reporter Yvonne Murray takes a look at Iran's secretive nuclear programme.

Middle East • 16 Jun

French President Emmanuel Macron confirmed the conference was called off on Friday

Two-state conference postponed - what could it achieve?

The United Nations was due to play host this week to a major high-level conference, co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia, to try to breathe life into the "two-state solution" - the international community's long held plan for Israel and Palestine to live side by side, in sovereign countries.

Analysis and Comment • 16 Jun

Washington, DC - April 8 : Environmental Protection Agency director Lee Zeldin, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, Energy Secretary Chris Wright and White House staff secretary Will Scharf watch as President Donald J Trump signs executive orders about coal p

Will Trump kill America's clean future?

President Trump wasted no time delivering on his campaign promises to the fossil fuel industry - rolling back US commitments on climate and clean energy, cutting federal funding to climate change science and lifting environmental regulations. What does it all mean for America's clean future?

Analysis and Comment • 01 Jun