In The News

In Ukraine, Russia's invading army has been on the offensive for months - but with little to show for it. Meanwhile, Ukraine is preparing a counter-attack that must succeed if international support for its armed forces is to continue. That's why it will do so only when the perfect opportunity arises, says military strategy expert Phillips O'Brien. Phillips talks to Bernice Harrison about the state...

King Charles III's Coronation will take place this Saturday at Westminster Abbey in London. The one-day event is estimated to cost the taxpayer between £50 and £100 million. An eye-watering bill, but one that probably won't make too much of an impact on the monarchy's finances. The finances of the British monarchy remain, in part, a mystery. Royal wills are never made public, so it’s not quite cle...

Over the next three years the Government is going to have a cumulative budget surplus of a projected €65 billion - the biggest budget surplus in our history. The spending choices are as many and varied but how should the vast pot of money set to roll into the exchequer be spent? To help solve the housing crisis? On money-in-the pocket cost-of-living measures? Or generations-long visionary one-off...

Why has armed conflict broken out in Sudan? To answer this question we need to understand the backgrounds of the two generals on opposing sides: Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the leader of the Sudanese Armed Forces, and Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, better known as Hemedti, the head of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces. The two men, once comrades, are now enemies motivated by power, identity and money. Dec...

Classified documents about the war in Ukraine and China’s experimental weapons are just some of files that were recently leaked from the Pentagon, finding their way online, onto chat rooms and YouTube. But the leak wasn’t the result of a sophisticated spy ring, or backed by Russian or Chinese intelligence. It was an inside job - and the work of 21-year-old air force reservist Jack Teixeira. B...

How did controversial landlord Marc Godart build his extensive portfolio of properties, owned and managed, in Ireland? Europe correspondent Naomi O’Leary followed the money back to the Godart family home in a leafy suburb in Luxembourg. Dublin correspondent Olivia O’Kelly explains what might happen next in the disputes between the prolific landlord and tenants who have lodged complaints against hi...

After his acquittal for murder ‘The Monk’ Hutch emerged from Dublin’s Special Criminal court a free man. He was found not guilty of the murder of David Byrne at the Regency Hotel in 2016. Swarmed by camera men and photographers, he walked silently to a taxi, ignoring questions about his future plans. Hutch had spent more than 600 days in prison. Now that’s he free, what will he do and where w...

The State has failed in its effort to convict Gerard Hutch of the murder of David Byrne at the Regency Hotel. The conclusion of the dramatic case with a verdict of not guilty leaves a lot of unanswered questions for the Director of Public Prosecutions about why its case failed, and for the GardaI about how it mismanaged evidence at points in its investigation. Conor Gallagher reports. Presented by...

During the Troubles the IRA set up a unit to find informers within its organisation. Informally called the ‘nutting squad’, it was led by Freddie Scappaticci, the son of an Italian immigrant who grew up in the Markets area of Belfast. He used kidnap, torture and murder to flush out alleged informers. But Scappaticci, one of the highest ranking men in the IRA, was himself an informer in the pay of...

The role of RTÉ Director-General, held by Dee Forbes since 2016, is well-paid, prestigious but daunting. The task of finding funding to maintain the broadcaster's output and compete in the era of streaming is a tough one. Now, leaks to the media, seemingly from within RTÉ's governing board, have revealed internal strife over the appointment of the successor to Forbes. What is going on at RTÉ? Laur...

On the Mediterranean, migrants face grave danger in the attempt to cross from Africa to their targets in Europe, places like the small Italian island of Lampedusa. Jade Wilson visited Lampedusa to report on how a new law governing the activities of NGO rescue missions has made the voyage, often on unsafe, overcrowded boats, even more hazardous. And Sally Hayden looks at a recent UN report on the h...

CNN news reporter Donie O'Sullivan doesn't usually cover the White House beat. He's more likely to be seen talking about online political movements or the use of technology to create misinformation. But he insisted on coming along to cover Joe Biden's four day visit to Ireland as the 'token Irishman', he tells Bernice Harrison and Simon Carswell. With Biden due to arrive today, they discuss past p...

In contrast with his son Daniel Kinahan, little has been known about the activities of Christy Kinahan snr, the founder of the Kinahan drug cartel. Irish Times reporters Colm Keena and Conor Lally have  now discovered  that, along with his partner and three young children, Mr Kinahan snr has been attempting to build a new life for himself in Africa. These efforts involved an attempt to e...

"Sean Quinn knows exactly what he did but chooses not to understand. It’s very easy for him to find others are to blame.” Enniskillen-born filmmaker, Trevor Birney, has spent five years on his documentary, Quinn Country, which aired on RTE late last year. The three-part series paints a visceral portrait of a man haunted by feelings of injustice and betrayal; not least in part due to the contributi...

The landlord of a Dublin apartment block, who evicted tenants last year claiming he intended to sell up, has been found by Dublin City Council to be using the property for unauthorised holiday letting. The rooms began appearing on AirBnB, the holiday rental site. And the price? Up to €100 euro a night for a bunkbed in a shared room, or €280 for a private one.   Bernice Harrison talks to...

Sex education in Ireland is getting a revamp. From September, students in the junior cycle will be taught about consent, relationships, the effects of pornography on sexual expectations and LGBTQ issues as part of their Social, Personal and Health Education curriculum (SPHE). While the proposed changes are largely welcomed, there is still some pushback, specifically on issues relating to gender id...

Donald Trump is the first ever former president to face criminal charges. To understand how he ended up in that ignoble position, we have to go back to the chaotic events of the 2016 presidential election. Washington correspondent Martin Wall explains. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The controversial decision to allow the no-fault eviction ban lapse on March 31st has barely left the news cycle since the Minister for Housing announced it three weeks ago. Darragh O'Brien insists that reimposing the embargo would exacerbate the housing supply crisis. Meanwhile, thousands of renters brace themselves for potential Notices to Quit and homeless services voice concerns over their cap...

Russian spy Sergey Cherkasov spent four years deep undercover as a politics student in Trinity College Dublin. His classmates knew him as Victor Muller Ferreira, a Brazilian national, eager to further his education and his prospects in Ireland. Five years on from his graduation, Cherkasov is in Brazil serving a 15 year prison sentence for several counts of fraud. And now, the Trinity graduate is f...

With more than half a billion downloads last year, TikTok has become the most popular app in the world. Despite its global popularity, suspicion around the app is growing over privacy and data collection matters. As the US considers an all out ban on the app, and western Governments move to block it on staff devices, we ask, will Ireland be next? Should we be next? In this episode, Forbes technolo...

A man in his 60s and a woman in her 50s have been released without charge, following their arrest this week in connection with the death of a newborn baby boy in Kerry in 1984. It's almost 39 years to the day since Baby John, as he was later named, washed up on a beach near Cahersiveen in Co. Kerry. But the delay in making a potential breakthrough in the case is down to the mishandling of the init...

The St John Ambulance organisation has been rocked by a report into its handling of child sexual abuse allegations. Jack Power tells Bernice Harrison what the report uncovered and where it leaves the century-old volunteer group. This episode contains descriptions of child sexual abuse. The Tusla helpline for anyone affected by abuse in St John Ambulance can be contacted on 045 839375 Produced...

In June 2020, Garda Colm Horkan was shot and killed while on duty in Castlerea, County Roscommon. His murder shocked the community and his colleagues in the force. Steven Silver of Foxford, County Mayo has now been convicted of Garda Horn’s murder, after two trials where jurors had to decide if Silver’s mental health was an excuse for his crime. To find out what happened in the courtroom, Aideen F...

Banks in the US and Europe are failing. Why? And could this new banking crisis spread to Irish shores? Cliff Taylor explains what's happening, why it's happening and whether we should be worried. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Something strange is happening in the Irish gangland scene. After years of escalating violence, gun crime across the country has now reached record lows. What's behind the drop and will it last? Crime and Security editor Conor Lally reports. Hosted by Aideen Finnegan. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.