Edmund Heaphy

Deputy Foreign Editor

Edmund Heaphy is Deputy Foreign Editor of RTÉ News. He previously worked with RTÉ Investigates and Prime Time. He has reported extensively from the Middle East on the conflict in Gaza and the 7 October attacks.

Several opinion polls suggest Kamala Harris has significantly narrowed the gap with Donald Trump

Can Kamala Harris hold the momentum in the US election?

For Kamala Harris, things are going just about as well as they could be. Late on Tuesday, Robby Mook, who managed Hillary Clinton's ill-fated 2016 campaign, remarked that it had been "a perfect 48 hours" for the US Vice President.

Analysis and Comment • 28 Jul 24

Kamala Harris's presidential campaign is becoming known as 'Operation Coconut Tree'

Why has a Kamala Harris coconut tree meme gone viral?

If you have spent any time on social media over the past few weeks, then you have probably already heard about Kamala Harris's coconut tree.

US Election 2024 • 23 Jul 24

Twelve-year-old Aya (right) said she is not happy in the shelter and that she wants to play with her own toys, in her own home

'I want to go home' - life in a Lebanese shelter

Since October, around 100,000 people have been forced to flee their homes in southern Lebanon. RTÉ Deputy Foreign Editor Edmund Heaphy visited a government-run shelter in the Lebanese city of Tyre.

Middle East • 30 May 24

Hezbollah members during an event gathering to mark annual Quds Day commemorations in Beirut on 5 April

Why conflict with Israel is the last thing Lebanon needs

The sectarian tensions that fuelled Lebanon's decades-long civil war are meant to have faded, but memories of a civil war, which ended in 1990, lie just beneath the surface.

Middle East • 29 May 24

A demonstration is support of Palestine in Dublin earlier this year (pic: RollingNews.ie)

Hurdles to Palestine statehood despite Irish recognition

Ireland has long signalled that it would, at some point, formally recognise the State of Palestine. However, it comes amid Israeli occupation and bloody military campaign and when Palestinian factions are thoroughly divided.

Analysis and Comment • 22 May 24

Smoke rises after Israeli airstrikes in eastern Rafah

Hamas said it accepted a deal, so where is the ceasefire?

When Hamas announced that it had accepted a ceasefire deal, the news was met with jubilation in Gaza. But, 24 hours later, a ceasefire is still out of reach, writes Deputy Foreign Editor Edmund Heaphy.

World • 07 May 24

Russia and China along with Iran were described as an 'axis of evil' by the Speaker of the US House of Representatives Mike Johnson

Is a new 'Axis of Evil' taking aim at the West?

The phrase 'Axis of Evil', first used by George W Bush in 2002, is back in vogue. This time, it is about Russia, China, Iran and North Korea. But it was questionable 20 years ago and similar questions prevail now, writes Edmund Heaphy.

World • 28 Apr 24

Members of the European Parliament attend a debate on Migration and asylum in the European Parliament

MEPs vote to overhaul EU's asylum and migration laws

MEPs have approved a revamped migration system that the pro-EU political centre promises would reduce irregular arrivals as it seeks to stem gains by the far right ahead of the bloc's parliamentary election in June.

Politics • 10 Apr 24

Despite the huge hurdles it faces, the two-state solution is back in the news

Israel-Palestine: What exactly is the two-state solution?

Depending on who you ask, the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is either a pipe dream, or the only viable way forward. Despite the huge hurdles it faces, the plan is back in the news, explains Deputy Foreign Editor Edmund Heaphy.

Middle East • 09 Mar 24

Yasser Eljuboori with his wife Laura Wickham

Irish anti-corruption advocate detained in Iraq

Yasser Eljuboori, an Irish anti-corruption advocate born in Iraq, has been denied permission to leave Iraq and return to his family in Ireland, his wife has said.

Ireland • 28 Feb 24