Hundreds of jobs at Meta’s Irish operations are at risk, with around 350 roles understood to be under threat as the Facebook parent presses ahead with another major round of global cutbacks. Meta currently employs about 1,800 people in Ireland. The company began informing employees today about how they may be affected by its plan to eliminate 8,000 jobs worldwide, equivalent to roughly 10% of its total workforce. Staff based in Ireland received emails early this morning advising them whether they could be affected by the…

Alarm over the Ebola outbreak in DR Congo intensified as the head of the World Health Organization warned that the epidemic’s reach and momentum are cause for serious concern. "Early on Sunday, I declared a public health emergency of international concern over an epidemic of Ebola disease in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda," Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told the World Health Assembly in Geneva. "I did not do this lightly... I'm deeply concerned about the scale and speed of the epidemic," he said. His remarks…

Hope of a near-term breakthrough in the US-Israeli conflict with Iran grew after two Chinese oil tankers made it out of the Strait of Hormuz, according to shipping data, while upbeat remarks from the ⁠US President and the Vice President pointed to possible movement toward a deal. President Donald Trump said yesterday that the war could end "very quickly", and Vice President JD Vance pointed to progress in talks with Tehran on an agreement to halt the fighting. "We're in a pretty good spot here," Mr Vance told a White House…

Military tensions over the Baltic spilled into Estonian airspace when a NATO warplane downed a suspected Ukrainian drone, Estonian authorities said, marking the latest reported breach in a region already on edge over repeated Ukrainian strikes inside Russia. Estonian public broadcaster ERR reported that a Romanian F-16 fighter jet brought down the drone near Lake Võrtsjärv in southern Estonia. Defence minister Hanno Pevkur said the aircraft’s path had been picked up by Latvia’s defence forces and by Estonia’s own radar…

A burst of gunfire shattered calm at a California mosque complex, leaving three men dead before police later found the two suspected teenage attackers dead from apparent suicide. Emergency crews responding to the scene discovered the victims outside the sprawling Islamic Center of San Diego, police said. The suspected shooters, 18 and 17, died by suicide, according to investigators. "We are actively investigating this as a hate crime," San Diego Police Chief Scott Wahl told reporters. The Islamic Center, in southern…

A court in northeastern Spain has set bail at €‌1⁠m for Jonathan Andic, the son of Mango founder Isak Andic, after naming him a suspect in the investigation into his father's death in late 2024. The court in Martorell, near Barcelona, also ordered him to hand over his passport, report once a week, and remain in Spain. In a statement, the court said the case was being "investigated as a charge of homicide". Earlier, Spanish police said they had arrested Isak Andic's eldest son in connection with the death of the fashion…

Iran has set out a sweeping proposal to the United States that would halt hostilities across the region, demand a US military pullback from areas near Iran and seek compensation for damage caused during the US-Israeli war, according to Iranian state media. Offering Tehran's first public account of the plan, Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said the package also calls for sanctions relief, the unfreezing of Iranian assets and an end to what he described as the US marine blockade, IRNA news agency reported. As…

Andy Burnham has been confirmed as Labour’s candidate for the Makerfield by-election, setting the stage for a closely watched contest with implications far beyond the constituency. Labour’s ruling National Executive Committee is understood to have shortlisted only the Greater Manchester mayor, removing the need for a vote by local party members. That decision tees up a battle between Mr Burnham and Reform UK’s Robert Kenyon, a local plumber who fought the seat for the party in 2024. Mr Burnham has presented his candidacy as…

This Monday, 18th May, North Western State of Somalia marks the 35th anniversary of reclaiming its sovereignty from Somalia on 18th May 1991 — a milestone that remains at the centre of national pride and political debate. Before I explain what May 18th means to Somalilanders, a brief note: this year’s observance feels different. Though I live abroad, the day still stirs deep feelings of pride and patriotism. I spoke with several people in North Western State of Somalia and found that, despite…

A painstaking search in the Maldives has ended in tragedy, with a specialist team finding the bodies of four missing Italian scuba divers who were killed in an underwater cave accident, according to Maldives officials and the DAN Europe divers' network. DAN Europe said a team of Finnish divers spent three hours carrying out the operation, during which they also collected the crucial information needed to prepare for recovering the bodies. "This marks an important milestone in an operation that remains technically demanding,…