At just 20, Seán Dunne from Laragh, Co Wicklow has carved out a place in sheep shearing history, becoming New Zealand’s top junior shearer. His victory also marks a first: no non-New Zealander had previously claimed the title. Dunne said the achievement had been his target for the season, and reaching it left him feeling “pretty good now alright, to get over there and become the top ranked”. Only three years into the trade, Seán reckons he has already shorn 70,000 sheep. “I travelled to New Zealand twice, and I've shorn in…

Ireland’s Taoiseach Michéal Martin will press Lebanon’s prime minister for accountability in the killing of Private Seán Rooney during talks in Beirut on Friday, while delivering a Christmas message of thanks to Irish peacekeepers serving with the U.N. in south Lebanon. Martin is expected to raise the case directly with Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, underscoring Dublin’s concern that justice remains incomplete nearly two years after Rooney was shot dead while his UNIFIL convoy came under fire on Dec. 14, 2022, as it traveled…