Abdiwahab Ahmed

As celebrities swept up the Met Gala’s red carpet in New York in towering looks and high drama last night, an Irish woman was quietly reshaping the evening from behind the scenes, helping make the event accessible for the first time. Sinéad Burke, chief executive and founder of the strategic accessibility consultancy Tilting the Lens, attended the invitation-only gala as an adviser to The Met's Costume Institute. Burke is already a familiar figure in fashion, having appeared among five disabled people featured across a…

Two foreign activists detained after a Gaza-bound flotilla was intercepted by Israeli forces will remain in custody until Sunday, according to the rights group representing them, as Israeli authorities press ahead with questioning. Saif Abu Keshek, a Spanish national, and Thiago Avila, from Brazil, appeared in court in Ashkelon today for a second hearing after being taken to Israel for questioning last week. The pair are being held in the southern Israeli city and were among dozens of activists on a flotilla headed for Gaza…

Romania was plunged deeper into political uncertainty on Monday after the country’s pro-EU government fell in a parliamentary no-confidence vote. Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan, who leads the National Liberal Party (PNL), was defeated in the afternoon ballot, ending a four-party coalition that had been in office for 10 months. Mr Bolojan had been heading a minority government since 21 April, when the Social Democrats (PSD) — parliament’s biggest party — withdrew from the coalition and demanded his resignation. The centre-left…

Health officials are tracing dozens of travelers after a cruise passenger infected with hantavirus died following a flight from Saint Helena to Johannesburg, deepening concern over an outbreak aboard the MV Hondius. There were 82 passengers and six crew on the 25 April flight, according to South African carrier Airlink. Among them was a Dutch woman whose husband had died from the virus on the ship and whose condition "deteriorated during a flight to Johannesburg", the WHO said in a statement. She had disembarked in Saint…

A deadly car attack tore through central Leipzig, leaving two people dead and about 20 others injured after a vehicle sped into a crowd in the eastern German city’s historic heart. Police arrested the driver — a 33-year-old German man — at the scene, but officials said they had not yet determined what drove him to carry out the attack. The incident adds to a disturbing string of car-ramming attacks that have rattled Germany in recent years, including assaults in Berlin, Munich and, in 2024, at a Christmas market in…

An armed confrontation just outside the White House perimeter triggered a brief lockdown yesterday afternoon after Secret Service officers encountered what they described as a "suspicious individual" who later opened fire before running from the scene and being shot by law enforcement. The episode prompted a temporary lockdown at the White House as authorities moved to secure the area. Secret Service agents patrolling the outer edge of the White House complex first spotted the person, whom Secret Service Deputy Director…

On fashion’s biggest night, the Met Gala once again turned Manhattan into a theater of celebrity, drawing Hollywood, music, sports and style’s biggest names — with Beyonce, Madonna and Nicole Kidman leading the charge down the red carpet. Guests were asked to interpret the theme 'Fashion is Art', a concept tied directly to the Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute’s new exhibit, 'Costume Art'. Not every look hewed closely to the brief, but the gala — traditionally staged on the first Monday in May — still delivered…

A possible case of human-to-human transmission may be unfolding among close contacts aboard the cruise ship at the center of a hantavirus outbreak, the World Health Organization has said, as officials work to move the most serious cases off the vessel and bring the situation under control. The agency said the immediate priority was evacuating ⁠two sick people before allowing the ship, ⁠currently ‌stationed in the Atlantic near Cape Verde, to continue ⁠toward the Canary Islands. ⁠It said the risk to the wider public remained…

A confirmed case of hantavirus on board a cruise ship anchored off Cape Verde has prompted heightened precautions as authorities monitor passengers and crew. Two Irish citizens are among the 149 people aboard MV Hondius. Oceanwide Expeditions, which operates the vessel, said strict safeguards have been introduced on board, including isolation procedures and enhanced hygiene measures. Here is a brief chronology of developments: 24 April: The body of a passenger was taken from the ship, with his wife accompanying it. 27…

Rudy Giuliani, the former New York mayor who became the face of the city’s response to the September 11 attacks, remained in critical condition as he recovered from pneumonia, according to a spokesman. Giuliani, 81, a one-time close ally of US President Donald Trump, has been removed from a mechanical ventilator and is now breathing on his own, spokesman Ted Goodman said on X. Goodman did not say where the former mayor — once dubbed “America’s mayor” after the September 11 attacks — is being treated or when he was admitted…