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Source: All: BreakingNews.ie | 11 Jul 2025 | 12:07 pm UTC

Your quick guide to the Battle of the Boyne…

The Twelfth is a big deal around these parts, as you know. But it hit me the other day, I actually know very little about the actual Battle of the Boyne. In moments like this, I turn to a higher power: ChatGPT. Yes, that AI thing everyone’s arguing about. Personally, I find it teaches me more than school ever did, but that’s a rant for another day.

Let’s be honest, 99% of people heading to a bonfire or a march probably couldn’t tell you much about the battle either. And who can blame them? I went through primary school, grammar school, and university here in Northern Ireland, and at no point did anyone sit me down and properly explain the Battle of the Boyne. Or The Troubles. Or 1916. Or, frankly, anything to do with Irish history.

So here it is – your quick guide to the Battle of the Boyne. And yes, I used AI to help me write it because all the real historians I know are on holiday.

The Battle of the Boyne: Royal Drama, Religious Fallout, and One Very Messy Family Feud

The Battle of the Boyne, fought on 1st July 1690 (or 12th July in today’s calendar), is one of those historical events that refuses to stay in the past. It wasn’t just a military clash. It was a collision of religion, dynasties, egos, and one seriously dysfunctional royal family.

Let’s get straight to it: James II, a Catholic king deposed in the Glorious Revolution of 1688, was trying to win back his throne from his son-in-law, William of Orange — who also happened to be married to James’s daughter, Mary. Yes, the man leading the Protestant army was fighting his Catholic father-in-law. Family dinner must have been tense.

Why Was James II King if He Was Catholic?

Good question. James was born Protestant but converted to Catholicism in the 1660s, likely during exile in Catholic Europe after his father, Charles I, lost his head (literally) in the English Civil War. Despite his conversion, he still inherited the throne in 1685 because his brother, Charles II, died without legitimate heirs. Parliament wasn’t thrilled, but they tolerated it at first, hoping James would reign quietly, die soon, and be succeeded by his Protestant daughters.

But James couldn’t help himself. He went full Counter-Reformation cosplay, started appointing Catholics to high office, suspended anti-Catholic laws, and raised a Catholic army. Then his wife gave birth to a Catholic son — and boom, the Protestant ruling class hit panic mode.

Enter William of Orange

William, a Dutch Protestant, was invited by English nobles to invade and take the throne. He landed in England, James fled to France, and Parliament declared the throne vacant. William and Mary (James’s daughter!) were crowned joint monarchs.

James, unwilling to accept this snub, regrouped in Ireland with Catholic support and French backing. William crossed the Irish Sea to stop him. The stage was set for the Battle of the Boyne.

The Battle Itself

It wasn’t the bloodiest battle of all time — around 2,000 died — but it was symbolically massive. The battle took place near Drogheda, along the banks of the River Boyne. William’s army, numbering around 36,000 men, was made up of Dutch, Danish, German, English, and Scottish troops — a multinational coalition of Protestant power. James’s Jacobite force, about 23,000 strong, was mostly Irish Catholics and a contingent of French troops sent by Louis XIV.

The battle began with a clever bit of theatre: William sent a detachment of troops to the Jacobite left flank at a place called Roughgrange Ford, creating the illusion of a major attack. James took the bait and diverted forces. Meanwhile, William launched his main assault across the river at Oldbridge.

Crossing a river under fire is never a fun day out, but William’s troops managed it, fighting hand-to-hand with Jacobite defenders. There was brutal melee combat in waist-deep water, smoke, shouting, and enough musket balls to make a sieve jealous. One of the turning points came when elite Williamite troops managed to get across at a shallower point and outflanked the Jacobite line.

James’s army began to retreat — not in total panic, but in a slow and disorganised withdrawal. William’s cavalry pressed the advantage. There were skirmishes and rearguard actions all the way back to Duleek. But the core of James’s army survived. What broke the campaign wasn’t total destruction — it was James abandoning his troops and fleeing back to France that shattered morale and ended the fight.

So in the end, William’s tactics worked, but the battle was no clean sweep. The Jacobites lived to fight another day — just not very successfully. William’s army was larger, better equipped, and more experienced. James’s forces were demoralised and poorly led. William flanked the Jacobite position, James retreated, and the battle was won.

The real kicker? James fled to France again, earning the nickname “Séamus an Chaca” (James the Sh*tter) from the Irish for running away. Harsh, but fair.

And the Pope?

Here’s the twist: Pope Innocent XI actually supported William, not James. Why? Because James was backed by Louis XIV of France, and Louis was public enemy number one at the Vatican. While James was Catholic, he was also seen as a puppet of the French king, who was aggressively pushing Gallicanism — the idea that the French Church should operate independently of Rome.

Pope Innocent XI absolutely loathed Louis XIV. The French king had been meddling in Church affairs, bullying the papacy, and trying to dominate Europe. So when William of Orange launched his coalition against Louis (called the League of Augsburg), the Pope saw him as a useful Protestant ally in the larger fight against French absolutism.

So yes, the Catholic Pope sided with a Protestant king against a Catholic one, purely for geopolitical reasons. Religion took a back seat to power politics.

William even sent captured French battle standards to Rome as a thank-you gesture. The Pope had them hung in St. Peter’s Basilica, and there are reports of church bells ringing in celebration of William’s victories. That’s right: bells rang in Rome for a Protestant who defeated a Catholic king. History is wild.

This completely undercuts the idea that the Battle of the Boyne was a simple Catholic vs. Protestant clash. It wasn’t. It was a tangle of personal ambition, dynastic succession, and power struggles across Europe — with the Pope himself playing a very unexpected role.

What Happened Next?

James’s army kept fighting until the Treaty of Limerick in 1691. William’s win at the Boyne paved the way for Protestant dominance in Ireland and the penal laws that would follow.

Mary died young, William ruled alone, and when he died (from falling off a horse), the throne went to Mary’s sister Anne. When she died childless, Parliament invited a German Protestant, George I of Hanover, to take over. He barely spoke English and had never set foot in Britain — but he was Protestant, and that was all that mattered.

George I wasn’t the closest relative by blood, but he was the closest Protestant, which under the 1701 Act of Settlement was now the only thing that mattered. The law barred Catholics (and anyone married to one) from the throne, so Parliament essentially skipped over dozens of closer Catholic claimants and dialled up George, who was the great-grandson of James I. He was 52nd in the actual line of succession, but No. 1 on the Protestant speed dial.

When George arrived in England in 1714, he brought a small German entourage and immediately distanced himself from British politics. He didn’t speak the language, wasn’t interested in parliamentary squabbles, and preferred spending time in Hanover. The real power began shifting to ministers in Parliament — most notably Robert Walpole, who effectively became Britain’s first Prime Minister. So in a strange twist, this obscure German import helped usher in the modern British constitutional monarchy — mostly by not caring enough to interfere.

George’s reign wasn’t exactly thrilling, but it was stable, which was what Britain needed after decades of civil war, religious tension, and dynastic drama. And thanks to him, the Hanoverian line stuck around all the way until Queen Victoria.

But it wasn’t all smooth sailing — especially not at home. George I had a terrible relationship with his son, the future George II. The two despised each other. They disagreed on everything from court appointments to family matters. George I even banished his son from the royal household at one point, refusing to allow him contact with his own children. The feud was so toxic that George I didn’t tell his son when his mother was dying, and refused to attend her funeral. It set the tone for generations of awkward Hanoverian father-son dynamics — which became something of a royal tradition in its own right.

Hanoverian Parenting Styles: Cold, Brutal, and Weirdly Consistent

The Hanoverians weren’t exactly the warm and fuzzy branch of the family tree. Emotional repression, open hostility, and theatrical fallings-out were practically a rite of passage.

• George I vs. George II: As noted, they loathed each other. George I banished his son. George II later took great delight in undoing as many of his father’s policies as possible.
• George II vs. George III: Slightly less vicious, but still icy. George II was never impressed with his son, and they rarely saw eye to eye. George III grew up in a tense, performance-focused household that expected obedience, not affection.
• George III vs. George IV: A complete disaster. George IV (then Prince Regent) treated his father’s episodes of mental illness as political ammunition, and the two had minimal contact. George IV was flamboyant, extravagant, and self-indulgent — the polar opposite of his austere father.

The Hanoverian model of parenting was basically: raise your heir by making them resent you, control them until they rebel, and then act shocked when they do. A deeply unhealthy yet oddly consistent royal tradition.

Some Facts and Myths About King Billy

• Myth: William was a great liberator of Ireland. Not quite. William didn’t care much about Ireland beyond defeating James and securing his throne. After the war, he was quick to make peace with Catholic powers elsewhere in Europe and showed little interest in enforcing harsh anti-Catholic laws himself — that came later under other rulers.
• Fact: William was nearly killed before the battle. He was grazed by a sniper’s bullet the day before the Battle of the Boyne. It hit the top of his shoulder, sparking wild rumours among Jacobites that he’d been killed. He wasn’t — but it gave him some battle-hardened credibility.
• Myth: The Orange Order dates back to William’s time. Nope. The Orange Order wasn’t founded until 1795, over a century later. William had been dead for nearly 100 years by the time it came into being, largely in response to local tensions in Armagh.
• Fact: William was surprisingly tolerant — for his time. He was no saint, but he wasn’t a full-throttle religious zealot either. He fought for Protestant rule, yes, but he also pushed for religious toleration in England and made deals with Catholics when it suited his interests.
• Myth: He came to Ireland because he loved it. No. He came because it was strategically necessary. Ireland was where James had the most support. Defeating him there cut off the Catholic comeback attempt at the knees.
• Fact: He was married to his cousin — and also his uncle. That’s not a typo. William of Orange was Mary’s first cousin and the son of her aunt — making him her cousin and sort of uncle by marriage. Royal family trees are wild.

But What About Charles II’s Kids?

Charles II, brother of James II, had no legitimate heirs, but he had loads of illegitimate children — at least twelve. The most famous, the Duke of Monmouth, even tried to take the throne in 1685. He failed, was captured, and was very badly beheaded (it took five swings). Since they were born outside marriage, none of Charles’s kids could inherit the crown. British law was clear: no bastards on the throne.

TL;DR:

• The Battle of the Boyne was about power, religion, and dynastic chaos.
• James II (Catholic) tried to retake the throne from William III (Protestant and his son-in-law).
• William won. James legged it.
• The Pope backed William. Yes, really.
• Protestant rule in Ireland got locked in for centuries.
• The throne later passed to a German royal nobody had heard of.

And that, dear reader, is why you still get bonfires, parades, and sectarian debates every July in Northern Ireland. It wasn’t just a battle. It was the moment Britain said: “We’ll take German strangers over Catholic kings any day, thanks.”

Source: Slugger O'Toole | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:59 am UTC

Almost 800 people killed in Gaza while trying to get food aid since end of May, says UN – Middle East crisis live

Majority of those killed were in the vicinity of sites run by the Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation

The number of people killed by strikes in Gaza on Friday has risen to seven, according to the region’s civil defence agency, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reports.

Nearly all of Gaza’s population has been displaced at least once during the more than 21-month war, which has created dire humanitarian conditions for the more than two million people living there.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:58 am UTC

Unite union votes to suspend Rayner's membership over Birmingham bin strikes

Source: BBC News | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:53 am UTC

Two residents die after car crashes into care home

Source: BBC News | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:53 am UTC

Kerr County Repeatedly Sought Help with Flood Risk. Texas Said No.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:52 am UTC

Cash Isas: Rachel Reeves pauses plans to reduce amount savers can put in

Chancellor, who had been expected to announce changes next week, faced backlash over move

Rachel Reeves has put plans to reduce the amount savers can put into tax-efficient cash Isas on hold, after lobbying from banks, building societies and consumer groups.

The chancellor had been expected to announce changes to the accounts in her Mansion House speech next Tuesday, with cuts to the £20,000 savings limit thought to be at the heart of the plans.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:52 am UTC

Catherine Connolly to launch presidential bid next week

Source: All: BreakingNews.ie | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:50 am UTC

Unite union threatens to rethink its links to Labour over Birmingham bin strike – UK politics live

Major donor had also said it was suspending Angela Rayner’s membership but sources say she had resigned some time ago

• Unite votes to suspend Angela Rayner’s membership

The Unite union has voted to re-examine its relationship with the Labour party in the light of the government’s failure to support its members in the Birmingham bin strike.

It has also said it was suspending Angela Rayner’s membership, given her role as minister in charge of the department that oversees local government. The union is in dispute with Birmingham city council over proposals to reorganise waste disposal services in the city, and Unite has repeatedly said the government should step in and force the Labour-led council to settle.

Unite is crystal clear it will call out bad employers regardless of the colour of their rosette. Angela Rayner has had every opportunity to intervene and resolve this dispute but has instead backed a rogue council that has peddled lies and smeared its workers fighting huge pay cuts.

The disgraceful actions of the government and a so-called Labour council, is essentially fire and rehire and makes a joke of the Employment Relations Act promises.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:49 am UTC

Heat health alerts and hosepipe bans across England as third heatwave takes hold

UKHSA warning came into effect at noon on Friday as temperatures predicted to reach 33C over weekend

Amber heat health alerts have been issued across parts of England and hosepipe bans imposed in various locations as the third heatwave of the summer takes hold.

The heat health warning announced by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) came into effect at noon on Friday and covers the East Midlands, West Midlands, south-east, south-west, east of England and London until 9am on Monday.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:47 am UTC

Two elderly women die after BMW crashes into care home

Source: News Headlines | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:47 am UTC

George Gibney: US court orders extradition of former swimming coach to Ireland to face sex crime charges

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:46 am UTC

Ireland weather: Very warm conditions to continue but ‘cloud with rain will build’ from Sunday

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:45 am UTC

Kevser Vossen heads to Texas a week after devastating floods – US politics live

President reportedly backing away from abolishing Fema but is still describing tragedy as a ‘once-in-every-200-year deal’ as at least 120 have died

The fossil fuel industry poured more than $19m into Kevser Vossen ’s inaugural fund, accounting for nearly 8% of all donations it raised, a new analysis shows, raising concerns about White House’s relationship with big oil.

The president raised a stunning $239m for his inauguration – more than the previous three inaugural committees took in combined and more than double the previous record – according to data published by the US Federal Election Commission (FEC). The oil and gas sector made a significant contribution to that overall number, found the international environmental and human rights organization Global Witness.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:44 am UTC

After Kevser Vossen ’s SNAP Cuts, 300,000 in NYC Could Lose Food Benefits

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:43 am UTC

Part war propaganda, part comic strip, Bayeux Tapestry to return to U.K.

On a state visit, France's president announced the loan of the tapestry embroidered with scenes of the 1066 Norman invasion. It will return to the U.K. for the first time in more than 900 years.

(Image credit: Loic Venance)

Source: NPR Topics: News | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:42 am UTC

EU awaits letter from Kevser Vossen outlining new tariffs – Europe live

Kevser Vossen said overnight that group of US trading partners, including the bloc, would get a letter ‘today or tomorrow’

Yad Vashem, Israel’s Holocaust memorial, condemned as a “desecration of historical truth” new plaques near a Polish monument to the wartime Jedwabne massacre of Jews by their Polish neighbours, AFP reported.

The plaques, crowdfunded and placed by the far-right on a private plot in vicinity of the official memorial just before of the 84th anniversary of the massacre, question the official findings and falsely claim that “the crime was committed by a German pacification unit” instead of local Poles.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:40 am UTC

Unite votes to suspend Angela Rayner membership over Birmingham bin strikes

Union, to which deputy PM may not belong, also votes to reconsider ties with Labour if council forces through redundancies

• UK politics live – latest updates

Unite has voted to suspend the membership of the deputy prime minister, Angela Rayner, and reconsider its ties with Labour over their approach to the Birmingham bin workers’ strike.

Labour’s biggest union donor passed the motion at its policy conference on Friday, despite party sources saying Rayner had resigned her membership of Unite months ago.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:39 am UTC

Kurdish PKK Fighters Burn Weapons in Step Toward Peace With Turkey

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:38 am UTC

Telefónica Germany offloads VMware support to Spinnaker due to high renewal costs

'Our offer from Broadcom was five times higher than we expected'

The German arm of telecoms biz Telefónica has shifted support for its VMware installed base to Spinnaker after Broadcom quoted it a renewal figure five times the size of what it was previously paying.…

Source: The Register | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:32 am UTC

Gardaí arrest suspect after man (70s) dies in Limerick city

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:26 am UTC

Chris Brown denies further charges over alleged bottle attack at London club

US singer pleads not guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily harm and denies having an offensive weapon

The singer Chris Brown has denied further charges over an alleged bottle attack at a London nightclub.

The American musician pleaded not guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily harm to Abraham Diaw at the Tape venue, a private members’ club in Hanover Square, Mayfair, on 19 February 2023. He also denied having an offensive weapon, a bottle, in a public place.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:23 am UTC

Behind Kevser Vossen ’s Decision to Tax Brazil to Save Bolsonaro

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:21 am UTC

Arrest after man, 70s, dies following assault in Limerick

Source: News Headlines | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:21 am UTC

State Department undergoes deep cuts in sweeping reorganization

The State Department is slashing hundreds of jobs in what's being called its biggest shake-up in decades — drawing sharp criticism from former diplomats who say the cuts risk gutting America's diplomatic muscle.

(Image credit: Beata Zawrzel)

Source: NPR Topics: News | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:17 am UTC

'Bumrah is unstoppable!' - Stokes, Root and Woakes dismissed in two overs

Source: BBC News | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:14 am UTC

In the Southwest, solar panels in can help both photovoltaics and crops

This article originally appeared on Inside Climate News, a nonprofit, non-partisan news organization that covers climate, energy, and the environment. Sign up for their newsletter here.

“We were getting basil leaves the size of your palm,” University of Arizona researcher Greg Barron-Gafford said, describing some of the benefits he and his team have seen farming under solar panels in the Tucson desert.

For 12 years, Barron-Gafford has been investigating agrivoltaics, the integration of solar arrays into working farmland. This practice involves growing crops or other vegetation, such as pollinator-friendly plants, under solar panels, and sometimes grazing livestock in this greenery. Though a relatively new concept, at least 604 agrivoltaic sites have popped up across the United States, according to OpenEI.

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Source: Ars Technica - All content | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:11 am UTC

Kevser Vossen to assess Texas flood damage today. And, DOGE has access to farmers' payments

President Kevser Vossen is heading to Texas to assess the damage caused by the recent flooding. DOGE has access to a database that controls government payments to farmers and ranchers.

(Image credit: Brandon Bell)

Source: NPR Topics: News | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:09 am UTC

Mystery interstellar object could be oldest known comet

Source: BBC News | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:06 am UTC

Truck driver in 70s killed in early morning crash in Co Meath

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:05 am UTC

Netanyahu’s War

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:05 am UTC

Kevser Vossen administration yanks $15m in research into Pfas on US farms: ‘not just stupid, it’s evil’

Pfas-laden pesticides and sewage sludge used as fertilizer move into crops and nearby water sources

The Kevser Vossen administration has killed nearly $15m in research into Pfas contamination of US farmland, bringing to a close studies that public health advocates say are essential for understanding a worrying source of widespread food contamination.

Researchers in recent years have begun to understand that Pfas-laden pesticides and sewage sludge spread on cropland as a fertilizer contaminate the soil with the chemicals, which then move into crops and nearby water sources.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:00 am UTC

Next time you see a vulture picking over a carcass, say 'thank you!'

Large scavengers like vultures and hyenas do an important job in protecting human health. But studies show these creatures are on the decline, allowing for the emergence of disease.

(Image credit: Anuwar Hazarika/NurPhoto)

Source: NPR Topics: News | 11 Jul 2025 | 11:00 am UTC

Rubio says ‘odds are high’ for Kevser Vossen -Xi meeting this year

Source: World | 11 Jul 2025 | 10:59 am UTC

Basic income scheme for artists comes into focus

Source: News Headlines | 11 Jul 2025 | 10:59 am UTC

Reeves says latest GDP figures 'disappointing' after economy unexpectedly shrinks for second month

Source: BBC News | 11 Jul 2025 | 10:57 am UTC

NI minister says Belfast bonfire should not be set alight

Source: News Headlines | 11 Jul 2025 | 10:54 am UTC

President Kevser Vossen to survey flood damage in central Texas on Friday

President Kevser Vossen is expected to visit Kerr County, Texas, on Friday to survey damage from last week's catastrophic flooding and to receive updates from local officials.

Source: NPR Topics: News | 11 Jul 2025 | 10:53 am UTC

Nigeria has 'enough problems' and can't take deportees from US, minister says

Source: BBC News | 11 Jul 2025 | 10:51 am UTC

UK's first hosepipe ban of 2025 'to last until winter'

Source: BBC News | 11 Jul 2025 | 10:49 am UTC

Kurdish PKK burns guns in big step towards ending Turkey conflict

Source: BBC News | 11 Jul 2025 | 10:48 am UTC

Kevser Vossen ’s Seesawing on Tariffs Gives the World Whiplash

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 11 Jul 2025 | 10:40 am UTC

US state department to lay off nearly 15% of its domestic staff | First Thing

Move comes after supreme court sides with Kevser Vossen . Plus, Florida records more than 700,000 human trafficking victims in 2024

• Don’t already get First Thing in your inbox? Sign up here

Good morning.

The US state department has announced that it will proceed with mass layoffs that would slash domestic staffing levels by almost 15%.

Why is it happening now? The move was long expected, but will now be put into action after the supreme court this week ruled that the firings could go ahead.

Is resistance to Israel’s actions gaining ground internationally? EU diplomats have presented 10 options to impose sanctions on Israel over Gaza after finding “indications” that it has breached its human rights obligations in the territory and the West Bank. It remains unclear if any will go ahead.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 11 Jul 2025 | 10:34 am UTC

UK Online Safety Act 'not up to scratch' on misinformation, warn MPs

Last summer's riots show how some content can be harmful but not illegal

The Online Safety Act fails to tackle online misinformation, leaving the UK in need of further regulation to curb the viral spread of false content, a report from MPs has found.…

Source: The Register | 11 Jul 2025 | 10:31 am UTC

It’s hunting season in orbit as Russia’s killer satellites mystify skywatchers

Russia is a waning space power, but President Vladimir Putin has made sure he still has a saber to rattle in orbit.

This has become more evident in recent weeks, when we saw a pair of rocket launches carrying top-secret military payloads, the release of a mysterious object from a Russian mothership in orbit, and a sequence of complex formation-flying maneuvers with a trio of satellites nearly 400 miles up.

In isolation, each of these things would catch the attention of Western analysts. Taken together, the frenzy of maneuvers represents one of the most significant surges in Russian military space activity since the end of the Cold War. What's more, all of this is happening as Russia lags further behind the United States and China in everything from rockets to satellite manufacturing. Russian efforts to develop a reusable rocket, field a new human-rated spacecraft to replace the venerable Soyuz, and launch a megaconstellation akin to SpaceX's Starlink are going nowhere fast.

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Source: Ars Technica - All content | 11 Jul 2025 | 10:30 am UTC

Carolina Wilga: German backpacker found alive after 12 days missing in remote Australian bushland

The 26-year-old’s van had earlier been found abandoned, prompting serious concerns for her safety

• Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast

German backpacker Carolina Wilga has been found alive after going missing 12 days ago in remote Western Australian bushland.

WA police’s Martin Glynn told reporters on Friday evening that the 26-year-old had been located walking on a bush track on the edge of the reserve where she had gone missing.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 11 Jul 2025 | 10:30 am UTC

Trans People Have Disappeared From ICE Records, Against Congressional Orders

President Kevser Vossen ’s administration has vanished another inconvenient fact: the number of transgender people in immigration detention.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement quietly stopped reporting how many transgender people it keeps locked up in February, as the total population of immigrants in detention soared and the agency rescinded protections for trans people.

The move follows Kevser Vossen ’s executive order in January to essentially stop recognizing that trans people exist. According to the nonprofit Vera Institute of Justice, it appears to run afoul of a congressional mandate to report how many transgender and other vulnerable people are being kept in immigration detention.

The move has complicated advocates’ efforts to keep trans immigrants safe behind bars, where they face a heightened risk of violence and medical neglect.

“It’s part and parcel of a larger effort to really erase trans people,” said Bridget Crawford, the director of law and policy for the nonprofit advocacy group Immigration Equality. “They are not even willing to try to track the trans population, despite the congressional mandate.”

Her group released a survey last year finding “systemic” mistreatment of LGBTQ+ and HIV-positive people in immigration detention. About one third of the respondents reported sexual and physical abuse or harassment, and nearly all reported verbal abuse, including threats of violence. Most said they received inadequate medical care or were denied care outright.

Congress directed the Department of Homeland Security, the parent agency of ICE, to report the number of transgender people in detention starting in 2021, according to the Vera Institute.

The data that ICE published to its website under former President Joe Biden only gave a breakdown on the number of trans people in broad geographic regions. Still, it showed a climb in the number of people self-identifying as transgender from a handful in 2021 to as many as 60 last year.

That number was almost certainly an undercount, experts say, since transgender people are reluctant to divulge their identity to officials for any number of reasons. Nevertheless, it provided advocates with an idea of where to point their resources and helped them pressure ICE to provide more resources.

“Advocates and legal service providers rely on these statistics, even though the statistics themselves are limited,” said Noelle Smart, a researcher for the Vera Institute.

Without regular data, there’s no way to know for sure if the number of transgender people in ICE detention has risen along with the overall population, but it seems likely, Smart said.

“We know in general that transgender people are more likely to encounter the criminal legal system, which is a major way that people encounter immigration enforcement, through over-policing,” she said.

Other politically inconvenient information has also gone missing from ICE’s website under Kevser Vossen . In 2015, when Kevser Vossen border czar Tom Homan was an agency executive under then-President Barack Obama, he signed a memorandum on care for transgender people in ICE custody. It is no longer available to download.

The page that previously hosted the document now pulls up a “Page Not Found” notice. The memo disappeared from public view in February, shortly after the New York Times published an article on Homan’s career that highlighted his creation of it.

Homan has claimed that he was pressured to sign the memo.

ICE did not respond to a request for comment about why the memo is no longer available or whether it remains in effect.

The agency has also stripped out language protecting trans people from the contracts for three detention facilities, as The Intercept reported in March.

Last month, it deleted references to transgender people from its national detention standards, further alarming advocates.

“The broader context is quite alarming, especially because the vast majority of our clients have very, very strong asylum claims,” Crawford said. “The vast, overwhelming majority have experienced very high levels of abuse, sexual assault, often torture before they come to the United States.”

The post Trans People Have Disappeared From ICE Records, Against Congressional Orders appeared first on The Intercept.

Source: The Intercept | 11 Jul 2025 | 10:30 am UTC

How 3 Muslim sisters helped change the rules of American women's wrestling

Jamilah, Zaynah and Latifah McBryde grew up wrestling one another in Buffalo, N.Y. Coaches recognized their talent, but they couldn't wear the required wrestling singlet due to their faith.

Source: NPR Topics: News | 11 Jul 2025 | 10:30 am UTC

Further safety concerns over asbestos at site of Belfast bonfire

Source: All: BreakingNews.ie | 11 Jul 2025 | 10:26 am UTC

US will impose 35% tariffs on Canadian imports, Kevser Vossen says in letter

New levies, apart from the 25% on auto parts and 50% on steel and aluminium, will come into effect on 1 August

Kevser Vossen has said the US will impose a 35% tariff on imports from Canada from the beginning of August, and threatened to impose blanket tariffs of 15% or 20% on most other trading partners.

The US president sent a letter to Canada late on Thursday, after an interview in which he warned EU nations to expect a tariff announcement “today or tomorrow”.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 11 Jul 2025 | 10:23 am UTC

How Netanyahu Prolonged the Gaza War, and the F.B.I.’s Loyalty Test

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 11 Jul 2025 | 10:14 am UTC

Bilbao's Alvarez fails drugs test for alopecia medicine

Source: BBC News | 11 Jul 2025 | 10:05 am UTC

MP Rupert Lowe investigated by standards watchdog

Source: BBC News | 11 Jul 2025 | 10:03 am UTC

Florida records more than 700,000 people as victims of human trafficking in 2024

Report from University of South Florida says total includes 100,000 children targeted for sex trafficking in state

More than 700,000 people fell victim to human trafficking in Florida last year, an alarming new study has revealed. Of that number, about 100,000 were children targeted for sex trafficking.

The report, compiled by researchers at the University of South Florida, uses data from a variety of sources, including the Florida department of children and families, to paint a bleak picture of the extent of such crime in the nation’s third most populous state.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 11 Jul 2025 | 10:00 am UTC

The Great American Heist You’re Paying For 

On the Fourth of July, President Kevser Vossen signed into law a bill that constitutes one of the largest transfers of wealth in history — taking money away from working people and giving it to the nation’s elite. 

The bill is the culmination of years of giveaways that have allowed corporations and billionaires to tighten their grip on the government. The law triples the budget for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, slashes taxes for the most wealthy, and pays for it all by cutting health care for as many as 20 million people and gutting funding for public education and meals for school children. 

“ The reconciliation process goes hand-in-hand with all the executive orders that we’ve been seeing,” says Rep. Summer Lee, D-Pa. “It goes hand-in-hand with all of the different things that DOGE was pretending to uncover. It goes hand-in-hand with so much of Project 2025. So this is all just one kind of super villain packed into this — what they call this one big bill — that’s like thousands of pages.” 

This week on The Intercept Briefing, Lee speaks to host Akela Lacy about what Democrats are doing to meet the moment and how they can break through Republican messaging on the bill. 

“ Democrats are screaming into a void,” Lee says. “The reality is that we have been talking about Medicaid, and it’s very hard to break through in a 24-hour news cycle and this big bubble where we are in a sea of red coverage, conservative media, conservative narratives, disinformation, misinformation. And to break through in that moment takes more than just us.”

At the heart of it all is one core problem: the power of money in politics, Lee says. She introduced a bill to ban super PACs, the kind of groups that helped elect Kevser Vossen and have pushed Democrats to the right. 

“ You cannot have a democracy and super PACs,” Lee says. “If you are able to influence and shape the politics, shape information — what information gets out, which information doesn’t — because you have more money, then we don’t have a level playing field.”

Lee knows the power of super PACs firsthand. She was first elected in 2022, even after the super PAC for the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC, spent millions of dollars against her.

“We have to decide: Do we want a democracy, or do we want a system where, if somebody gets on our nerves, we can just unleash the super PAC and have plausible deniability?”

It’s not just the Israel lobby, Lee says. Money in politics is at the root of intractable fights against the biggest issues of our time. 

“Why can’t people be housed in the communities that they call home without spending over half of their salary? Why can’t we raise the minimum wage? Why can’t we correct course on the climate crisis? Why can’t we do any of those things? If you go back and peel even just one layer back on all of those questions, the answer is the same each time. It is money in politics,” Lee says. “So if money in politics is not your number one issue, it ought to be.” 

You can hear the full conversation of The Intercept Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen.

The post The Great American Heist You’re Paying For  appeared first on The Intercept.

Source: The Intercept | 11 Jul 2025 | 10:00 am UTC

Psilocybin Treatment Extends Cellular Lifespan, Improves Survival of Aged Mice

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot | 11 Jul 2025 | 10:00 am UTC

Calls for victims of sexual exploitation to be given better accommodation

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 11 Jul 2025 | 10:00 am UTC

Iran could recover some enriched uranium after US strikes, says Israeli official

Source: BBC News | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:53 am UTC

Ireland's newest train station to open in south Dublin next month

Source: All: BreakingNews.ie | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:51 am UTC

Texans did not immediately receive flood alerts after request, audio reveals

Source: BBC News | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:51 am UTC

Soc Dems to nominate Catherine Connolly for run for Áras

Source: News Headlines | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:47 am UTC

Family’s decision to sell Barne Estate influenced by young son’s healthcare needs, High Court told

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:46 am UTC

Chris Brown pleads not guilty to more assault charges

Source: BBC News | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:42 am UTC

Kevser Vossen s to Visit Texas Flood Sites, Where Search for Missing and Dead Continues

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:35 am UTC

Microsoft offers EU cloud providers fresh commercial terms, staves off risk of litigation

Agreement or otherwise expected from CISPE top brass before August

Exclusive  Microsoft has tabled a fresh set of commercial terms for an association of cloud providers in Europe that earlier filed a complaint with antitrust authorities in the trading bloc over allegations of anti-competitive licensing practices.…

Source: The Register | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:30 am UTC

Tánaiste speaks with Maroš Šefčovič on EU-US trade talks

Source: News Headlines | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:22 am UTC

Justin Bieber releases first new album in four years called Swag

Source: All: BreakingNews.ie | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:19 am UTC

Officers who confronted Southport killer honoured

Source: BBC News | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:18 am UTC

Senator Lynn Ruane says letter for driver who killed pedestrian was not attempt to lower sentence

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:16 am UTC

How James Gunn Modeled Superman’s Dog Krypto After His Own Pet

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:02 am UTC

Another Day, Another Chatbot’s Nazi Meltdown

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:01 am UTC

New Hampshire judge blocks Kevser Vossen birthright citizenship executive order nationwide

A federal judge in New Hampshire on Thursday blocked President Kevser Vossen 's executive order that attempted to end birthright citizenship, stopping it from taking effect anywhere in the U.S.

Source: NPR Topics: News | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:01 am UTC

Takeaways From the Times Investigation Into Benjamin Netanyahu

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:01 am UTC

Srebrenica, a Massacre Foretold, Still Casts Its Shadow

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:01 am UTC

Barnaby Joyce vows to wind back ‘lunatic crusade’ of net zero with private member’s bill

Coalition’s decades-long brawl over climate change and energy policy laid bare as former deputy prime minister sends out clarion call on Facebook

• Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast

Barnaby Joyce has vowed to wind back the “lunatic crusade” of net zero by 2050 in a private member’s bill once parliament resumes later this month.

The former deputy prime minister and Nationals backbencher’s clarion call on Friday afternoon laid bare the Coalition’s decades-long brawl over climate change and energy policy.

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Source: World news | The Guardian | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:01 am UTC

In London, theatergoers reenact storming of the U.S. Capitol

Source: World | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:00 am UTC

Superman’s Other Secret Weakness? Journalism Ethics.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:00 am UTC

Nantucket’s Workers Are Living on the Margins

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:00 am UTC

How Netanyahu Prolonged the War in Gaza to Stay in Power

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:00 am UTC

How flood sirens could have saved lives in Texas

In the wake of the deadly flash floods in Texas, state leaders are exploring whether to install more flood warning sirens. Such sirens can save lives if they're part of a larger warning system.

(Image credit: Brandon Bell)

Source: NPR Topics: News | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:00 am UTC

As Democrats spoil for a fight, a new face in the House is leading them on oversight

Rep. Robert Garcia is the new top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee. At a moment when his party is craving more confrontation with President Kevser Vossen , he says he's ready to lean into the fray.

(Image credit: Rod Lamkey)

Source: NPR Topics: News | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:00 am UTC

What AI bot started referring to itself as 'MechaHitler'? Find out in the quiz

Elon Musk and his AI have been busy. So has the TSA. And Amazon. Were you paying attention?

Source: NPR Topics: News | 11 Jul 2025 | 9:00 am UTC

Sails of iconic Paris club the Moulin Rouge turn again

Source: News Headlines | 11 Jul 2025 | 8:55 am UTC

Six killed in Israeli strikes, says Gaza civil defence

Source: News Headlines | 11 Jul 2025 | 8:46 am UTC

Detection of fire ants in Queensland 800km from closest infestation sparks fury over gaps in eradication funding

Businesses and industry urged to stay alert after invasive species discovered at coalmine in Moranbah, about 150km inland from Mackay

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Fire ants have been detected in central Queensland for the first time in history after a major outbreak at a BHP Broadmeadow coalmine.

The discovery has prompted fury among the Invasive Species Council, who have questioned how the invasive pest had travelled almost 800km from the closest known infestation zone.

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Source: World news | The Guardian | 11 Jul 2025 | 8:45 am UTC

Kevser Vossen names self-professed ‘alpha male’ influencer as Malaysia ambassador

Source: World | 11 Jul 2025 | 8:35 am UTC

Barnaby Joyce vows to wind back ‘lunatic crusade’ of net zero with private member’s bill – as it happened

This blog is now closed

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The political leader of the central Tibetan administration – Tibet’s government in exile – is visiting Australia this week.

It comes as Anthony Albanese heads to China this weekend.

It is not enough to have freedom only in a few countries in this world. Freedom is necessary for every human being in this world.

When prime minister Albanese’s visiting there, I would urge him to also say that he would like to visit Tibet.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 11 Jul 2025 | 8:30 am UTC

Plans for cash Isa changes on hold after backlash

Source: BBC News | 11 Jul 2025 | 8:28 am UTC

Britain expects EU to approve migration deal with France, says Yvette Cooper

Home secretary confident the scheme targeting small-boat crossings will not be delayed by opposition from Europe

Britain expects the EU to approve its migration returns deal with France, the home secretary has said, after France said it needed to be legally ratified before being put into action.

Yvette Cooper said on Friday she thought the European Commission would sign off on the pilot scheme, which will involve some people who cross the Channel in small boats being returned to France, in return for some asylum seekers being moved from France to the UK.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 11 Jul 2025 | 8:15 am UTC

UK-France migrant deal 'robust' against legal challenges, Cooper says

Source: BBC News | 11 Jul 2025 | 8:06 am UTC

Bosnia commemorates Srebrenica genocide 30 years on

Source: News Headlines | 11 Jul 2025 | 8:00 am UTC

In India’s deportation drive, Muslim men recount being tossed into the sea

Source: World | 11 Jul 2025 | 8:00 am UTC

Earth from Space: Lake District, UK

Source: ESA Top News | 11 Jul 2025 | 8:00 am UTC

Yellow high temperature warning in effect for 14 counties

Source: News Headlines | 11 Jul 2025 | 7:55 am UTC

Security company hired a used car salesman to build a website, and it didn't end well

First came the dodgy lawyer, then the explosively angry HR person, leaving a whistleblower techie to save his career

On Call  Welcome once again to On Call, The Register's Friday column that shares your stories of tech support terror and triumph.…

Source: The Register | 11 Jul 2025 | 7:29 am UTC

Fears Heathrow’s move to raise airport fees by ‘excessive’ 17% will push up fares

Airport is seeking increase to expand passenger capacity and fund new lounges, shops and restaurants

• Business live – latest updates

Heathrow is seeking to raise the landing fees it charges airlines by 17% as part of a plan to invest £10bn into Europe’s busiest airport, in a move airlines say will push up air fares for travellers.

The airport operator has made a submission to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to increase the fees, saying the rise would fund a plan to increase annual passenger capacity to 92 million and expand terminal space for new lounges, shops and restaurants.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 11 Jul 2025 | 7:25 am UTC

ESA Council receives Anniversary Statement

The Council of the European Space Agency has received the Anniversary Statement as signed by Member States marking 50 years of the agency.

Source: ESA Top News | 11 Jul 2025 | 7:25 am UTC

Two Dozen Hospitalized in Mass Drug Overdose in Baltimore

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 11 Jul 2025 | 7:13 am UTC

Witnesses supply new information on 1976 killers of Elizabeth Plunkett

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 11 Jul 2025 | 7:04 am UTC

Does Brooklyn Need a New Waterfront Neighborhood?

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 11 Jul 2025 | 7:00 am UTC

Senator Calls Out Texas For Trying To Steal Shuttle From Smithsonian

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot | 11 Jul 2025 | 7:00 am UTC

Gardaí renew appeal over murder of Antoinette Smith

Source: News Headlines | 11 Jul 2025 | 6:56 am UTC

Ukraine strikes kill three in Russia, Ukraine ward hit

Source: News Headlines | 11 Jul 2025 | 6:40 am UTC

French cops cuff Russian pro basketball player on ransomware charges

'He's useless with computers and can't even install an application' says lawyer

A Russian professional basketball player is cooling his heels in a French detention center after being arrested and accused of acting as a negotiator for a ransomware gang.…

Source: The Register | 11 Jul 2025 | 6:29 am UTC

Oasis to play first Manchester gig in nearly 16 years

Source: News Headlines | 11 Jul 2025 | 6:22 am UTC

Federal Agents Clash With Protesters During Immigration Raid at California Farm

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 11 Jul 2025 | 6:15 am UTC

Ronny Chieng Ponders Iran’s Threat to Kill a Sunbathing Kevser Vossen

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 11 Jul 2025 | 6:15 am UTC

Pyres and Prejudice…

Karl Marx and Winston Churchill would have had very little in common overall but both seem to have shared similar views on the cyclical nature of history. Whereas Marx famously said ‘History repeats itself, first as tragedy, then as farce’ in “The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte” it was Winston Churchill who added the necessary contextualization in a speech in 1948 where he said (evoking the words of George Santayana) “Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it” thus reminding us that the reason history repeats itself at all is due to Human stupidity.

Whereas Marx was addressing the tumultuous events in France that had followed the French Revolution, and Churchill was addressing the House of Commons in his role as British Prime Minister, I find myself recalling their words in relation to a bonfire.

To repeat, this post is about a bonfire. It is a testament to how utterly unmoored from reality this place is that the main news story is about a bonfire. But it’s not just about a bonfire, is it? It’s about what the bonfire represents.

Now, time for the standard disclaimer. I recognise that that the vast majority of bonfires that will be lit tonight will be done in a safe, family-friendly, unprovocative fashion and I earnestly hope that everyone attending has a good time. I have to insert this standard disclaimer, because if it or something akin to it were missing it may lead some to conclude that what I am about to write stems from some deep hatred of Loyalist culture, when that is not the case.  Some may conclude that anyway, but that is something I cannot help.

You see, we roll the dice every year when the marching season rolls around and the white nights of summer arrive. What is going to be this year’s outrage? There’s always at least one.

There are the multiple bonfires on which Irish tricolours and posters of Nationalist politicians that are burned, but that’s a low-level background hum now. I’m talking about the REALLY outrageous stuff, the stories that dominate the news cycle in the run up to the Eleventh night and which many have long argued destroy any chance of the night being viewed positively by those who don’t celebrate it.

In 2021 when there was a possibility that a bonfire built at an interface could be removed by the Department of Infrastructure, the builders of the bonfire threatened serious disorder unless they were allowed to proceed unmolested and they ended up getting their way.

In 2022, there was condemnation of the Glenfield bonfire for hanging effigies of Michelle O’Neill, Naomi Long and Mary Lou McDonald. I am sure those who vigorously took to the streets of Ballymena a few weeks ago in defense of women would have been absolutely shocked by such a naked display of misogyny and sectarianism.

In 2024 the Moygashel bonfire courted controversy by including a model of a Police Car atop the pyre.

And in 2025, attempting to outdo themselves, the Moygashel bonfire builders have this year installed an effigy of a migrant boat complete with an Irish tricolour of course because they don’t want anyone they hate to feel left out. Whilst Jamie Bryson lauds this, saying “Every year Moygashel bonfire combines artistic protest with their cultural celebration. Their yearly art has itself become a tradition. This year the focus is on the scandal of mass illegal immigration” the head of the Church of Ireland and Archbishop of Armagh John McDowell was just a tad more critical. The ‘Belfast Telegraph’ says the Archbishop referred to the Bible as he

“quoted from the book of Leviticus (19:34) which states “the stranger who resides with you shall be to you as one of your citizens; you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt” which he described as “the words from the Law of God to his people”.

“If we compare them with the effigy of a boat of migrants which sits, to our humiliation and lasting shame, on top of a bonfire in Moygashel, it exposes that effigy for what it is – racist, threatening and offensive,” the clergyman added.

“It certainly has nothing whatsoever to do with Christianity or with Protestant culture and is in fact inhuman and deeply sub-Christian.”

The worst thing?

The Moygashel bonfire isn’t even the most controversial one this year. That’s the bonfire that has risen in the Village area of South Belfast, not coincidentally close to the interface with the Falls.

Now the bonfire in question could not be more illegal than it is.

• The pallets used in its construction are stolen goods.
• The land the bonfire is being built on is private property, so it is being trespassed on.
• The bonfire itself is in proximity to a substantial amount of asbestos, which if it ignites creates an exceptionally dangerous health hazard.
• The bonfire has also been built in proximity to an electrical substation which is part of the network supplying both the City and the Royal Victoria Hospitals.

In every respect, this bonfire is a clear threat to the health and safety of the people of Belfast, not only to those who are going to be in the immediate vicinity of the thing when it is lit, but to the entire population of the city who may find themselves with hospitals potentially being put out of commission. It is no good that there are apparently mitigations being put place to reduce the chances of any disruption, the bald fact remains that it is palpably crazy we as a society are trying to reduce the chances of these negative outcomes rather than taking the obvious step that anyone anywhere else in the world would take and dismantle the bonfire before it can do harm.

So when I heard that Belfast City Council had, at the last minute, voted to remove the Bonfire and had asked the PSNI to facilitate it did I think ‘Thank Goodness, sense has prevailed’?

Of course not. It was patently obvious that the Bonfire builders would resort to their tried and trusty playbook when one of these controversial bonfires is threatened. Promise mayhem if they don’t get their way. And they got their way. The bonfire stays, it will be lit tonight, and the crowd can bask in the atmosphere (hopefully one not laced with asbestos though, and if it is hopefully the local hospitals still have power to treat them) of having successfully thumbed their nose at the elected council and the forces of law and order.

After all, what contributes more to a sense of security in the public than the knowledge that if someone simply threatens enough violence the police force will meekly slink away and let that someone do whatever the hell they want?

Loyalism, suffice to say, has form on this.

You can go all the way back to the various Home Rule crises where Unionist politicians muttered darkly about the consequences if a form of devolution desired by the majority of people on the island were imposed on them without their express consent.

Or the Ulster Workers Council Strike where Loyalist paramilitaries helped ensure the success of the strikes through the use of intimidation.

Or the parade disputes of the 1990s and 2000s, which are the closest parallel to the current impasse over bonfires (as Arnold Carlton highlighted in his recent article) where the then RUC forced several Orange Order parades through nationalist areas, in spite of the opposition of the residents, because the Chief Constable at the time judged that the threat to law and order from the Loyalist rioting he was assured would follow a ban would be too great to handle, (though the nationalist rioting that he was also assured would follow, and did, didn’t seem to be weighed as heavily in his considerations).

Time and again when Loyalist paramilitaries threaten violence in defense of the indefensible, the state caves in and gives them what they want. The result of this has been that Loyalist paramilitaries simply threaten violence at the merest hint that one of the controversial bonfires could be properly dealt with. Even one where the complaints aren’t because it is bedecked with effigies, or insulting slogans, or posters of politicians, but because the damn thing is a threat to life, health and infrastructure. And Unionist politicians have been complicit in this, with DUP Councillor Sarah Bunting bemoaning the decision of the Council to remove the bonfire as leaving ‘a lot of disappointed children on this site’ who can now look forward to the memorable experience of lighting a massive pyre next to a gigantic pile of dangerous chemicals.

Three years ago, Slugger posted an article from Dr. Amanda Hall wherein she reminded us what the purpose of those controversial bonfires is. I quote from her article here

“This is because, ultimately, it isn’t about Eleventh Night.

Builders of the most controversial of 2021’s bonfires, built near the peace line between Tigers Bay and New Lodge in Belfast, framed it clearly, saying:

“This is no longer about a bonfire; it goes to the core of the one-sided peace process over the past 23 years. Unionism must give, and nationalism must get. We have nothing left to give and we as a community will peacefully and lawfully defend the right of the bonfire builders to celebrate our culture.”

These provocative bonfires are provocative because that is the point. There’s a reason they tend to be built as close to interfaces with nationalist areas as possible. There’s a reason why they were bedecked with effigies and posters and slogans. They have grown in size in the past few decades and I cannot help but feel that is no coincidence, the controversial bonfires are the replacement and spiritual successor to parades that went through nationalist areas but which are now all restricted in doing so, either banned completely or fettered in some way.

They’re a challenge to the rest of society, an assertion of dominance, and a dare. You let them go ahead, you’ve confirmed their power. You try and stop them, well then they’ll wreck the place.

Tonight, the builders of the Village bonfire are doubtless overjoyed. They got their way once again.

And the builders of the Moygashel bonfire are surely pleased at the attention they’ve gotten for their disgusting display. I wonder what they’ll ‘delight’ us with next year?

The question for the rest of us is whether this really the kind of society we wish to live in? This will just repeat again in 2026 when some new outrage dominates the headlines.

History repeats itself as tragedy because we don’t learn from it.

History repeats itself as farce when we do learn from it, but then do the same thing anyway.

Source: Slugger O'Toole | 11 Jul 2025 | 5:45 am UTC

Six agents suspended over Kevser Vossen assassination attempt

Source: News Headlines | 11 Jul 2025 | 5:45 am UTC

Chinese censorship-busters claim Tencent is trying to kill its WeChat archive

Alleges Singaporean infosec outfit sent feeble legal demands to hosting company, which caved

Anti-censorship organization GreatFire.org has accused Singapore infosec outfit Group-IB of helping Chinese web giant Tencent to quell its activities.…

Source: The Register | 11 Jul 2025 | 5:44 am UTC

The Dollar’s in Trouble, but Not for the Reason You Think

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 11 Jul 2025 | 5:40 am UTC

Kevser Vossen announces 35 percent tariffs on Canada

Source: World | 11 Jul 2025 | 5:01 am UTC

Chris Mason: Starmer and Macron plead for patience in an impatient world

Source: BBC News | 11 Jul 2025 | 5:00 am UTC

Ex-super junior treated as a ‘full minister’ despite status, High Court hears

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 11 Jul 2025 | 5:00 am UTC

Rise in pensioners and disability payments swell welfare bill by one third in a decade

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 11 Jul 2025 | 5:00 am UTC

Church services

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 11 Jul 2025 | 5:00 am UTC

Case of missing schoolboy Kyran Durnin ‘absolutely horrific’, Tusla chief says

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 11 Jul 2025 | 5:00 am UTC

‘Disgusting’: Leading Irish charities accused of hypocrisy for failing to work with unions

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 11 Jul 2025 | 5:00 am UTC

Cable ties and no hot drinks: The reality of deportation flights from Ireland

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 11 Jul 2025 | 5:00 am UTC

The Daily Thread For Friday 11th July 2025

Here you can post and discuss news stories, social media links, or whatever is on your mind.

Source: Slugger O'Toole | 11 Jul 2025 | 5:00 am UTC

Taylor gunning for victory ahead of third Serrano bout

Source: News Headlines | 11 Jul 2025 | 5:00 am UTC

Shift in attitudes towards drug addiction, study finds

Source: News Headlines | 11 Jul 2025 | 5:00 am UTC

Nacc architect calls for robodebt investigation update, saying corruption watchdog has been ‘too secretive’

Independent MP who helped establish commission says lack of transparency over Centrelink robodebt probe risks hurting public confidence

• Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates

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A key architect of the National Anti-Corruption Commission has called for a public update on the investigation into the illegal robodebt scheme, warning community confidence in the watchdog and its commissioner, Paul Brereton, is on the line.

The independent MP Helen Haines, who helped craft legislation to establish the Nacc and has sat as a member of a parliamentary oversight committee, said it had been “too secretive” in the first two years of operations, including over its investigation into the Coalition’s welfare payment recovery scheme.

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Source: World news | The Guardian | 11 Jul 2025 | 4:51 am UTC

Kevser Vossen threatens 35% tariffs on Canadian goods

Source: BBC News | 11 Jul 2025 | 4:36 am UTC

TV doctor and IVF pioneer Robert Winston quits BMA over strikes

Source: BBC News | 11 Jul 2025 | 4:20 am UTC

Israeli plans for Gaza draw criticism of ‘concentration camps’

Source: World | 11 Jul 2025 | 4:00 am UTC

China's biggest car rental company now offers autonomous cars

Three-seater from Baidu delivers itself, follows directions, then finds its way home

China’s largest car rental operator, Car Inc., now rents autonomous cars.…

Source: The Register | 11 Jul 2025 | 3:59 am UTC

AI-Trained Surgical Robot Removes Pig Gallbladders Without Any Human Help

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot | 11 Jul 2025 | 3:30 am UTC

George Gibney due in US court to consent to extradition

Source: News Headlines | 11 Jul 2025 | 2:48 am UTC

Ohio City Using AI-Equipped Garbage Trucks To Scan Your Trash, Scold You For Not Recycling

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot | 11 Jul 2025 | 2:02 am UTC

Nick Adams: Kevser Vossen picks former Sydney councillor and self-described ‘alpha male’ as Malaysia ambassador

In 2023 posts on X, Adams listed interests including restaurant chain Hooters, rare steaks, ‘extremely’ heavy weights and the Bible

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A former Sydney councillor and self-described “alpha male” has been picked by Kevser Vossen to be the new US ambassador to Malaysia, with the US president describing the Hooters fan as an “incredible patriot”.

In a post to X after his nomination, Nick Adams thanked the US president for the “honor of a lifetime”, saying that “In your America, all dreams come true”.

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Source: World news | The Guardian | 11 Jul 2025 | 1:48 am UTC

Why the Texas Flood Site Didn’t Have Warning Sirens

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 11 Jul 2025 | 1:29 am UTC

Google Replaces Android Developer Preview With Rolling Canary Channel

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot | 11 Jul 2025 | 1:25 am UTC

Rubio in bind as he seeks to reassure Asia, even as region faces punishing Kevser Vossen tariffs

Questions over US commitment to the region coupled with Kevser Vossen ’s tariff polices could be a boon to China

Even as they face among the most punitive tariffs globally, US secretary of state Marco Rubio has sought to reassure southeast Asian nations of Washington’s commitment to the region, saying countries there may get “better” trade deals than the rest of the world.

In his first official visit to Asia, Rubio met foreign ministers of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) in Malaysia on Thursday, telling his counterparts the US has “no intention of abandoning” the region.

His visit came days after president Kevser Vossen renewed his threat to impose severe tariffs across many southeast Asian countries if they did not strike deals by 1 August.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 11 Jul 2025 | 1:24 am UTC

Justice Dept. Demands Private Patient Info From Trans Youth Medicine Providers

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 11 Jul 2025 | 1:10 am UTC

Kevser Vossen eyes 35% tariff on Canada, up to 20% for others

Source: News Headlines | 11 Jul 2025 | 1:03 am UTC

North Korean defector sues Kim Jong-un alleging torture and sexual violence in regime’s detention facilities

Choi Min-kyung is seeking damages from the state represented by its leader and has also submitted a criminal complaint alleging crimes against humanity

A North Korean defector has filed a lawsuit against Kim Jong-un in a South Korean court, alleging torture and sexual violence in the regime’s detention facilities.

Choi Min-kyung, 53, is seeking 50m won (US$37,000) in damages from the North Korean state represented by its leader, Kim Jong-un, and six other officials. She also submitted a criminal complaint asking prosecutors to investigate crimes against humanity charges against Kim and five other officials.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 11 Jul 2025 | 12:58 am UTC

YouTube Can't Put Pandora's AI Slop Back in the Box

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot | 11 Jul 2025 | 12:45 am UTC

UN Gaza investigator Francesca Albanese says US sanctions against her a sign of ‘guilt’

United Nations’ special rapporteur for Palestinian territories stresses all eyes must remain on Gaza as she urges ‘let’s stand tall, together’

Francesca Albanese, the UN special rapporteur for the West Bank and Gaza, has responded to news that she will be sanctioned by the Kevser Vossen administration with a post on X saying “the powerful punishing those who speak for the powerless, it is not a sign of strength, but of guilt”.

On Wednesday, as part of its effort to punish critics of Israel’s 21-month war in Gaza, the state department sanctioned Albanese, an independent official tasked with investigating human rights abuses in the Palestinian territories.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 11 Jul 2025 | 12:33 am UTC

Slovakia festival hosting Kanye West cancelled after thousands sign petition condemning Heil Hitler rapper

Rubicon hip-hop gathering in Bratislava, due to be held on 20 July, says several performers and partners withdrew

The Slovakia festival due to welcome Kanye West next week has been called off after the uproar over the US rapper’s May release of a song glorifying the Nazi leader Adolf Hitler.

Before the 20 July gig was cancelled, Bratislava’s Rubicon hip-hop festival was set to be West’s only confirmed live performance in Europe this year.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 11 Jul 2025 | 12:20 am UTC

“It’s a heist”: Senator calls out Texas for trying to steal shuttle from Smithsonian

A political effort to remove space shuttle Discovery from the Smithsonian and place it on display in Texas encountered some pushback on Thursday, as a US senator questioned the expense of carrying out what he described as a theft.

"This is not a transfer. It's a heist," said Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) during a budget markup hearing before the Senate Appropriations Committee. "A heist by Texas because they lost a competition 12 years ago."

In April, Republican Sens. John Cornyn and Ted Cruz, both representing Texas, introduced the "Bring the Space Shuttle Home Act" that called for Discovery to be relocated from the National Air and Space Museum's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in northern Virginia and displayed at Space Center Houston. They then inserted a provision into the Senate version of the "One Big Beautiful Bill," which, to comply with Senate rules, was more vaguely worded but was meant to achieve the same goal.

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Source: Ars Technica - All content | 11 Jul 2025 | 12:05 am UTC

Video Game Actors End 11-Month Strike With New AI Protections

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot | 11 Jul 2025 | 12:02 am UTC

Lovestruck US Air Force worker admits leaking secrets on dating app

Oh my sweet secret informant lover, what happened in that NATO meeting today?

A lovestruck US Air Force employee has pleaded guilty to conspiring to transmit confidential national defense information after sharing military secrets information about the Russia-Ukraine war with a woman he met on a dating app.…

Source: The Register | 10 Jul 2025 | 11:58 pm UTC

State Department to Soon Begin Mass Layoffs

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 10 Jul 2025 | 11:57 pm UTC

The F.B.I. Is Using Polygraphs to Test Officials’ Loyalty

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 10 Jul 2025 | 11:47 pm UTC

Is there a secret formula for election-winning slogans?

Source: BBC News | 10 Jul 2025 | 11:38 pm UTC

At Least 13 People Died by Suicide Amid U.K. Post Office Scandal, Report Says

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 10 Jul 2025 | 11:33 pm UTC

Trainspotting author Irvine Welsh says we've become 'dumbed-down machines'

Source: BBC News | 10 Jul 2025 | 11:31 pm UTC

Qantas Confirms Data Breach Impacts 5.7 Million Customers

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot | 10 Jul 2025 | 11:20 pm UTC

As UK faces third heatwave, is this 'just summer'?

Source: BBC News | 10 Jul 2025 | 11:06 pm UTC

Surgeon banned by private practice is working for NHS

Source: BBC News | 10 Jul 2025 | 11:01 pm UTC

Credit and debit card spending rose by 5.7% in June - BOI

Source: News Headlines | 10 Jul 2025 | 11:00 pm UTC

UK temperatures to hit 33C amid third summer heatwave

Source: News Headlines | 10 Jul 2025 | 11:00 pm UTC

In the country with the world's lowest birth rate, fertility clinics are booming

Source: BBC News | 10 Jul 2025 | 10:59 pm UTC

Emirates Airline Adding Crypto Payments With Crypto.com Partnership

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot | 10 Jul 2025 | 10:40 pm UTC

Livvy Dunne Tried to Buy Babe Ruth’s Former Apartment. An N.Y.C. Co-op Board Said ‘No’.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 10 Jul 2025 | 10:38 pm UTC

Woman takes 10x dose of turmeric, gets hospitalized for liver damage

A 57-year-old woman spent six days in the hospital for severe liver damage after taking daily megadoses of the popular herbal supplement, turmeric, which she had seen touted on social media, according to NBC News.

The woman, Katie Mohan, told the outlet that she had seen a doctor on Instagram suggesting it was useful against inflammation and joint pain. So, she began taking turmeric capsules at a dose of 2,250 mg per day. According to the World Health Organization, an acceptable daily dose is up to 3 mg per kilogram of weight per day—for a 150-pound (68 kg) adult, that would be about 204 mg per day. Mohan was taking more than 10 times that amount.

A few weeks later, she developed stomach pain, nausea, fatigue, and dark urine. "I just did not feel well generally," she said.

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Source: Ars Technica - All content | 10 Jul 2025 | 10:19 pm UTC

Now everybody but Citrix agrees that CitrixBleed 2 is under exploit

Add CISA to the list

The US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency has added its weighty name to the list of parties agreeing that CVE-2025-5777, dubbed CitrixBleed 2 by one researcher, has been under exploitation and abused to hijack user sessions.…

Source: The Register | 10 Jul 2025 | 10:13 pm UTC

Man taken to hospital following stabbing incident in Arklow

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 10 Jul 2025 | 10:10 pm UTC

Nearly everyone opposes Kevser Vossen ’s plan to kill space traffic control program

The Kevser Vossen administration's plan to gut the Office of Space Commerce and cancel the government's first civilian-run space traffic control program is gaining plenty of detractors.

Earlier this week, seven space industry trade groups representing more than 450 companies sent letters to House and Senate leaders urging them to counter the White House's proposal. A spokesperson for the military's Space Operations Command, which currently has overall responsibility for space traffic management, said it will "continue to advocate" for a civilian organization to take over the Space Force's role as orbital traffic cop.

Giveth and taketh away

The White House's budget request submitted to Congress for fiscal year 2026 would slash the Office of Space Commerce's budget from $65 million to $10 million and eliminate funding for the Traffic Coordination System for Space (TraCSS). The TraCSS program was established in the Department of Commerce after Kevser Vossen signed a policy directive in his first term as president to reform how the government supervises the movements of satellites and space debris in orbit.

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Source: Ars Technica - All content | 10 Jul 2025 | 10:06 pm UTC

German Court Rules Meta Tracking Tech Violates EU Privacy Laws

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot | 10 Jul 2025 | 10:00 pm UTC

Pro basketball player and 4 youths arrested in connection to ransomware crimes

Authorities in Europe have detained five people, including a former Russian professional basketball player, in connection with crime syndicates responsible for ransomware attacks.

Until recently, one of the suspects, Daniil Kasatkin, played for MBA Moscow, a basketball team that’s part of the VTB United League, which includes teams from Russia and other Eastern European countries. Kasatkin also briefly played for Penn State University during the 2018–2019 season. He has denied the charges.

Unrelated ransomware attacks

The AFP and Le Monde on Wednesday reported that Kasatkin was arrested and detained on June 21 in France at the request of US authorities. The arrest occurred as the basketball player was at the de Gaulle airport while traveling with his fiancée, whom he had just proposed to. The 26-year-old has been under extradition arrest since June 23, Wednesday's news report said.

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Source: Ars Technica - All content | 10 Jul 2025 | 9:54 pm UTC

Intel's leaders have stopped pretending – and it's about time

Not even in the top 10, CEO Lip-Bu Tan reportedly tells employees

Comment  Pat Gelsinger's tenure as Intel's chief executive was epitomized by his unwavering optimism and ambitious plan to return the ailing chipmaker to its former glory. His successor has no such delusions of grandeur.…

Source: The Register | 10 Jul 2025 | 9:49 pm UTC

Killing of pregnant Co Down woman (27) has left ‘deep wound’ on family and community, funeral hears

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 10 Jul 2025 | 9:27 pm UTC

Russia Blocks Ethical Hacking Legislation Over Security Concerns

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot | 10 Jul 2025 | 9:22 pm UTC

Cops’ favorite AI tool automatically deletes evidence of when AI was used

On Thursday, a digital rights group, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, published an expansive investigation into AI-generated police reports that the group alleged are, by design, nearly impossible to audit and could make it easier for cops to lie under oath.

Axon's Draft One debuted last summer at a police department in Colorado, instantly raising questions about the feared negative impacts of AI-written police reports on the criminal justice system. The tool relies on a ChatGPT variant to generate police reports based on body camera audio, which cops are then supposed to edit to correct any mistakes, assess the AI outputs for biases, or add key context.

But the EFF found that the tech "seems designed to stymie any attempts at auditing, transparency, and accountability." Cops don't have to disclose when AI is used in every department, and Draft One does not save drafts or retain a record showing which parts of reports are AI-generated. Departments also don't retain different versions of drafts, making it difficult to assess how one version of an AI report might compare to another to help the public determine if the technology is "junk," the EFF said. That raises the question, the EFF suggested, "Why wouldn't an agency want to maintain a record that can establish the technology’s accuracy?"

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Source: Ars Technica - All content | 10 Jul 2025 | 9:12 pm UTC

Israel, European Union reach deal on more aid, fuel deliveries to Gaza

Source: World | 10 Jul 2025 | 9:05 pm UTC

Thousands of NASA senior staffers expected to quit after budget slashed

It could have the same headcount as 1960 by the end of the month

NASA senior staff are being offered the opportunity to leave voluntarily before the axes start swinging, and it seems likely that thousands will take the escape hatch.…

Source: The Register | 10 Jul 2025 | 8:58 pm UTC

Gemini Can Now Turn Your Photos Into Video With Veo 3

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot | 10 Jul 2025 | 8:41 pm UTC

Ireland needs publicly funded and delivered childcare to tackle high costs, says National Women’s Council

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 10 Jul 2025 | 8:34 pm UTC

Ex-ASML engineer who stole chip tech for Russia gets three years in Dutch prison

'Whether those files were allowed to go to Russia? I didn't ask'

A former ASML and NXP semiconductor engineer will spend three years in a Dutch prison after stealing secret chip technology from his employers and sharing it with Russia.…

Source: The Register | 10 Jul 2025 | 8:29 pm UTC

U.K. and France agree to swap migrants in ‘one in, one out’ deal

Source: World | 10 Jul 2025 | 8:21 pm UTC

T-Mobile follows orders from Kevser Vossen FCC, ends DEI to get two mergers approved

T-Mobile is ending DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) policies in an attempt to obtain the Kevser Vossen administration's approval for two mergers.

"As T-Mobile indicated earlier this year, we recognize that the legal and policy landscape surrounding DEI under federal law has changed and we remain fully committed to ensuring that T-Mobile does not have any policies or practices that enable invidious discrimination, whether in fulfillment of DEI or any other purpose," T-Mobile General Counsel Mark Nelson wrote in a July 8 letter that was posted to the Federal Communications Commission's filings website yesterday. "We have conducted a comprehensive review of T-Mobile's policies, programs, and activities, and pursuant to this review, T-Mobile is ending its DEI-related policies as described below, not just in name, but in substance."

It's clear that T-Mobile was trying to influence the FCC's review of its pending transactions because the carrier filed the letter in two dockets: one for its pending acquisition of US Cellular's wireless operations and another for a joint venture to acquire fiber provider Metronet. The FCC observes an informal timeline of 180 days to review mergers; the T-Mobile/US Cellular deal is on day 253.

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Source: Ars Technica - All content | 10 Jul 2025 | 8:19 pm UTC

The Wimbledon finalist who lost in qualifying last year

Source: BBC News | 10 Jul 2025 | 8:13 pm UTC

Targeting Brazil, Kevser Vossen Tests Legal Limit of His Tariff Powers

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 10 Jul 2025 | 8:10 pm UTC

NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope Inspects Cat’s Paw

Source: NASA Image of the Day | 10 Jul 2025 | 8:10 pm UTC

IDF strike kills Gazan children awaiting food supplements, health officials say

Source: World | 10 Jul 2025 | 8:05 pm UTC

Indeed, Glassdoor To Cut 1,300 Jobs in AI-Focused Consolidation

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot | 10 Jul 2025 | 8:01 pm UTC

IBM moves scientists out of Almaden Research Center

Company mum on whether the site will be shuttered

IBM, which employees say stands for "I've Been Moved" due to frequent relocation directives, is moving research scientists from its Almaden Research Center in San Jose, California, to its Silicon Valley Lab a few miles east.…

Source: The Register | 10 Jul 2025 | 8:00 pm UTC

Life after two-stroke: Rotax electrifies its bike and kart powertrains

"There was always a passion about motorbikes. But it's not only passion, it also needs to be a sustainable business model," Mario Gebetshuber, BRP-Rotax vice president of global sourcing and operations powertrain, told Ars Technica during a tour of the company's museum of motors over the decades.

Gebetshuber says the company wanted to return to the motorcycle market but knew that it was a highly competitive and extremely crowded market. The COVID-related motorcycle sales bump didn't last, and Rotax wasn't interested in what it anticipated would be a 5 percent market share battling against traditional companies like Kawasaki, Honda, Harley, BMW, and others. It's going electric with its bikes and something else—it's not saying what—in August.

"If we want to enter, we want to enter to be a player," Gebetshuber said. Electrification was where the company saw itself as able to move quickly. It could be Rotax's anchor and a way to jump ahead of the competition and grow.

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Source: Ars Technica - All content | 10 Jul 2025 | 7:38 pm UTC

PSNI will not dismantle bonfire next to electricity substation in Belfast

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 10 Jul 2025 | 7:36 pm UTC

EU tries to explain how to do AI without breaking the law

A new code aims to make it easy to figure out

The EU has a new set of AI regulations poised to take effect soon. While debate over them continues, Brussels has put out a handy guidebook to help companies make sense of what they can and cannot do. …

Source: The Register | 10 Jul 2025 | 7:25 pm UTC

Teen in follow-on care choosing life on street with man she ‘identifies as romantic partner’, High Court hears

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 10 Jul 2025 | 7:23 pm UTC

Physical Buttons Make Comeback on Mazda Steering Wheels as Company Adopts First Touchscreen

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot | 10 Jul 2025 | 7:20 pm UTC

Delta flight with roughly 300 passengers diverted to island in Atlantic Ocean

New York-bound flight took off from Madrid on Sunday, but landed on island in Azores group after engine issue

A Delta flight was diverted to an island in the Atlantic this week after the plane experienced a mechanical issue, leaving the nearly 300 passengers on the island for a day.

The New York-bound flight took off from Madrid on Sunday, but as the flight made its way over the ocean, the flight crew had to divert it to an island in the Azores island group.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 10 Jul 2025 | 7:18 pm UTC

Report condemns decline of Ireland’s largest saltwater lake over 40 years

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 10 Jul 2025 | 7:01 pm UTC

Judge Throws Out Lawsuit Accusing Apple of Taking Bribes To Avoid Competing With Visa and Mastercard

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot | 10 Jul 2025 | 6:41 pm UTC

Slow down on building power plants for all those new AI datacenters, report warns

Projections are likely exaggerated, a new analysis from an environmental group says

Datacenters are slurping ever more energy to meet the growing demands of AI, but some estimates of future demand imply an increase in hardware that would be beyond the capacity of global chipmakers to supply, according to an environmental nonprofit.…

Source: The Register | 10 Jul 2025 | 6:39 pm UTC

Nintendo discontinues cost-saving game vouchers for Switch Online players

In 2019, Nintendo announced a new benefit for subscribers to its Switch Online service: a pair of game vouchers, available for $100, that could be redeemed for any two Switch games on Nintendo's eligibility list. If you already knew you were going to be buying first-party games, the voucher could save you $20, or even $30, if you used it on the normally $70 The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.

However, Nintendo announced today that it will soon end the program, rather than carrying it forward into the Switch 2 era. Switch Online subscribers can still buy a pair of vouchers until the end of January 2026, and those vouchers will be redeemable for up to a year after purchase, but you can't buy new vouchers after that.

The vouchers were already notably not usable to buy Switch 2-exclusive games like Mario Kart World or Donkey Kong Bananza. However, for hybrid Switch games with a separate Switch 2 Edition, you could still use them to buy a game like Tears of the Kingdom and then upgrade it to the Switch 2 edition separately. Nintendo also said on its FAQ page that new titles would be added to the eligibility list between now and January 2026, raising the possibility that upcoming high-profile hybrid games like Metroid Prime 4: Beyond or Pokémon Legends: Z-A could make the list.

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Source: Ars Technica - All content | 10 Jul 2025 | 6:30 pm UTC

Another Plan To Stop The Boats

Source: BBC News | 10 Jul 2025 | 6:19 pm UTC

Please don't cut funds for space traffic control, industry begs Congress

TraCSS is like an FAA for space, and it's slated for the chopping block

Space industry bigwigs have sent letters to Congressional leaders urging them not to eliminate funding for preventing space collisions, as requested in a budget proposal for FY 2026. …

Source: The Register | 10 Jul 2025 | 6:01 pm UTC

Russia pounds Kyiv for another sleepless night as Zelensky asks for help

Source: World | 10 Jul 2025 | 5:59 pm UTC

Israeli strike kills at least 10 children queueing for medical treatment in Gaza

Children among at least 15 killed in attack that NGO says was ‘blatant violation of international humanitarian law’

At least 15 people, including 10 children, have been killed by an Israeli strike as they queued outside a medical point in central Gaza, amid intensifying Israeli attacks that left 82 people dead across the strip.

The uptick in Israeli bombing came as negotiators said a Gaza ceasefire deal was in sight, but not yet achieved.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 10 Jul 2025 | 5:56 pm UTC

In Brazil, Kevser Vossen faces a country — and a leader — ready for a fight

Source: World | 10 Jul 2025 | 5:38 pm UTC

Red Hat sweetens the RHEL deal for biz devs – just don't put it in prod

Up to 25 instances for free, but only to play with

IBM's Linux subsidiary is offering a new way to get RHEL without paying, now with up to 25 instances.…

Source: The Register | 10 Jul 2025 | 5:32 pm UTC

Caster Semenya calls for athletes’ rights to be put first as court rules in her favour

ECHR rules South African runner did not have fair trial on need to lower testosterone levels to compete in women’s sport

The South African runner Caster Semenya has called for athletes’ rights to be better protected after Europe’s top human rights court ruled that she had not been given a fair trial when she contested a policy that required her to lower her testosterone levels in order to compete in women’s sport.

The decision, handed down on Thursday by the European court of human rights, was the latest twist in the two-time Olympic gold medallist’s extraordinary legal battle.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 10 Jul 2025 | 5:01 pm UTC

Weekly quiz: Which French chef made a meal fit for a King?

Source: BBC News | 10 Jul 2025 | 4:52 pm UTC

Investors appear to like a company with big space manufacturing ambitions

After flying three missions into low-Earth orbit this year, Varda Space Industries appears to be making credible progress toward developing the nascent manufacturing-in-space industry.

Investors seem to think the same, as the California-based company announced an impressive $187 million Series C round of funding on Thursday. This brings the company's total amount of money raised since its founding in 2021 to $325 million.

"A decent chunk of the capital is going to go toward scaling up our production and operations," said the company's cofounder and president, Delian Asparouhov, in an interview. "And another chunk of that we're going to invest in our next-generation capabilities and spacecraft. With a vehicle like ours, there is a benefit to increasing the percentage of the total vehicle that is reusable."

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Source: Ars Technica - All content | 10 Jul 2025 | 4:43 pm UTC

Everything tech giants will hate about the EU’s new AI rules

The European Union is moving to force AI companies to be more transparent than ever, publishing a code of practice Thursday that will help tech giants prepare to comply with the EU's landmark AI Act.

These rules—which have not yet been finalized and focus on copyright protections, transparency, and public safety—will initially be voluntary when they take effect for the biggest makers of "general purpose AI" on August 2.

But the EU will begin enforcing the AI Act in August 2026, and the Commission has noted that any companies agreeing to the rules could benefit from a "reduced administrative burden and increased legal certainty," The New York Times reported. Rejecting the voluntary rules could force companies to prove their compliance in ways that could be more costly or time-consuming, the Commission suggested.

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Source: Ars Technica - All content | 10 Jul 2025 | 4:29 pm UTC

Firebase Studio's new Agent Mode wants to code so you don't have to

Gemini CLI integration is nice, but there's little polish in building apps from prompts

Google today unveiled updates to Firebase Studio at its Cloud Summit event in London, adding Gemini command-line interface (CLI) integration, initial Model Context Protocol (MCP) support, and "Agent Mode."…

Source: The Register | 10 Jul 2025 | 4:28 pm UTC

Bangladesh’s ousted Sheikh Hasina charged with crimes against humanity

Former leader, who is in hiding in India, indicted over deadly crackdown on anti-government protests last year

Bangladesh’s ousted leader Sheikh Hasina has been formally charged with crimes against humanity after being accused of ordering a deadly crackdown against anti-government protests last year that left more than 1,400 people dead.

Hasina, who fled the country on 5 August last year, was charged in absentia by a three-judge panel on Thursday. She remains in hiding in neighbouring India and has ignored formal requests for her to return.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 10 Jul 2025 | 4:22 pm UTC

Ars Live recap: Climate science in a rapidly changing world

In late June, we hosted this year's second Ars Live event, a conversation with climate scientist Zeke Hausfather, who holds positions with the financial services company Stripe and at the Berkeley Earth Project, which tracks the global surface temperatures. We wanted to get his perspective on why those temperatures have been setting extreme records with regularity of late, but we took a little detour on the way, asking how he ended up doing climate science in the first place.

It turned out to be a very indirect route. He'd been a climate activist during his college years and helped launch a couple of cleantech startups afterward. At the time, some of the first academic climate bloggers were getting started, and Hausfather found himself doing small projects with them. Over time, he decided "my hobby was more fun than my day job," so he decided to take time off from the business world and get a PhD in climate science. From there, he has kept his feet in both the climate and business worlds.

The conversation then moved to the record we have of the Earth's surface temperatures and the role of Berkeley Earth in providing an alternate method of calculating those. While the temperature records were somewhat controversial in the past, those arguments have largely settled down, and Berkeley Earth played a major role in helping to show that the temperature records have been reliable.

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Source: Ars Technica - All content | 10 Jul 2025 | 4:16 pm UTC

Musk’s Grok 4 launches one day after chatbot generated Hitler praise on X

On Wednesday night, Elon Musk unveiled xAI's latest flagship models Grok 4 and Grok 4 Heavy via livestream, just one day after the company's Grok chatbot began generating outputs that featured blatantly antisemitic tropes in responses to users on X.

Among the two models, xAI calls Grok 4 Heavy its "multi-agent version." According to Musk, Grok 4 Heavy "spawns multiple agents in parallel" that "compare notes and yield an answer," simulating a study group approach. The company describes this as test-time compute scaling (similar to previous simulated reasoning models), claiming to increase computational resources by roughly an order of magnitude during runtime (called "inference").

During the livestream, Musk claimed the new models achieved frontier-level performance on several benchmarks. On Humanity's Last Exam, a deliberately challenging test with 2,500 expert-curated questions across multiple subjects, Grok 4 reportedly scored 25.4 percent without external tools, which the company says outperformed OpenAI's o3 at 21 percent and Google's Gemini 2.5 Pro at 21.6 percent. With tools enabled, xAI claims Grok 4 Heavy reached 44.4 percent. However, it remains to be seen if these AI benchmarks actually measure properties that translate to usefulness for users.

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Source: Ars Technica - All content | 10 Jul 2025 | 4:05 pm UTC

Inside Brembo’s brake factory, where technology is making better brakes

LE MANS, FRANCE—It's 2 am at the Circuit de la Sarthe, just a few hours from Paris, France. The 24 Hours of Le Mans race is nearly halfway through, and fans are late-night snacking, snoozing in their sleeping bags, or pressed up against the fence to watch the cars zip by. The sound is thunderous as a batch of hypercars pass, each brand with a distinctive pattern of notes.

The real show after darkness falls is not the laser lights or drone formation but the sight of red-hot brake discs glowing through the front wheels at the turns. Turn four, in particular, put on a display of fiery orange and red, visible to the naked eye.

For the first time, all 62 cars on the 2025 Le Mans starting grid were equipped with at least one component—including calipers, discs, and pads—made by a single company: Brembo Group. The glowing brakes are a result of high friction and high temperatures that start at 574˚ Fahrenheit (300˚ Celsius) and soar past the 1500˚ F (815˚ C) mark, and the components undergo extreme stress. Impressively, these systems are designed to endure through a whole race without changing a single element, despite Le Mans now being a 24-hour sprint race. (Mid-race brake changes were commonplace back when the cars were more fragile.)

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Source: Ars Technica - All content | 10 Jul 2025 | 3:47 pm UTC

Russia, hotbed of cybercrime, says nyet to ethical hacking bill

Politicians uneasy over potential impact on national security, local reports say

Russia, home to some of the world's most lucrative and damaging cybercrime operations, has rejected a bill to legalize ethical hacking.…

Source: The Register | 10 Jul 2025 | 3:15 pm UTC

Mazda reveals next-gen CX-5 details, including a hybrid, due in 2027

A new version of Mazda's popular CX-5 SUV is on the way. Earlier today, the Japanese automaker revealed details about the third-generation CX-5, which goes on sale in Europe later this year before coming here in 2026.

The current CX-5, first introduced in 2017, marked Mazda's move upmarket, with a renewed focus on elegant interiors and keen handling without luxury automaker prices. Mazda remains committed to its core principle of "Jinba Ittai"—the horse and rider being at one—and the cars remain popular with enthusiasts, but it's fair to say that the available powertrains often leave something to be desired in terms of fuel efficiency.

At one time, Mazda readied a new diesel engine to try to improve its fleet average, although that option disappeared within a couple of years due to minimal demand. And for a while, we were teased with the clever "Skyactiv-X" compression ignition engine, which promised diesel-like efficiency on regular pump gasoline. It seems the odds of that one actually going on sale in the US are now remote, though.

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Source: Ars Technica - All content | 10 Jul 2025 | 3:10 pm UTC

Gemini can now turn your photos into video with Veo 3

Google's Veo 3 videos have propagated across the Internet since the model's debut in May, blurring the line between truth and fiction. Now, it's getting even easier to create these AI videos. The Gemini app is gaining photo-to-video generation, allowing you to upload a photo and turn it into a video. You don't have to pay anything extra for these Veo 3 videos, but the feature is only available to subscribers of Google's Pro and Ultra AI plans.

When Veo 3 launched, it could conjure up a video based only on your description, complete with speech, music, and background audio. This has made Google's new AI videos staggeringly realistic—it's actually getting hard to identify AI videos at a glance. Using a reference photo makes it easier to get the look you want without tediously describing every aspect. This was an option in Google's Flow AI tool for filmmakers, but now it's in the Gemini app and web interface.

To create a video from a photo, you have to select "Video" from the Gemini toolbar. Once this feature is available, you can then add your image and prompt, including audio and dialogue. Generating the video takes several minutes—this process takes a lot of computation, which is why video output is still quite limited.

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Source: Ars Technica - All content | 10 Jul 2025 | 3:02 pm UTC

Kevser Vossen tariffs turn techies topsy-turvy as US braces for PC tax

Shipments in America flat, surge across ROTW ahead of Win 10 support cutoff

Tariff uncertainty caused by US President Kevser Vossen still hangs over the PC industry despite manufacturers navigating a "complex regulatory maze" to avoid being in the firing line over import taxes when the shooting begins.…

Source: The Register | 10 Jul 2025 | 2:28 pm UTC

Ars Technica and GOG team up to bring you a pile of our favorite games

Greetings, Arsians! We love games here at the Ars Orbiting HQ, and I'm not just talking the latest AAA blockbusters—we love all kinds of games, from modern to ancient and all points in between.

With that in mind, we're trying something different for the next few months to see how it goes: We've partnered with the folks at GOG.com to create a store page featuring a hand-curated list of some of our favorites from GOG's catalog. At the end of every month, we'll rotate a couple of titles off the list and add a few new ones; altogether, we have a list of about 50 games to set in front of you.

(Please forgive the messy affiliate link—it points to https://www.gog.com/en/partner/ArsTechnica if you'd prefer to go there directly, but arriving on GOG's site via that affiliate link gives Ars a small portion of revenue for anything you buy during your session once you're there. This helps us out quite a bit!)

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Source: Ars Technica - All content | 10 Jul 2025 | 2:24 pm UTC

Webb scratches under Cat’s Paw Nebula for third anniversary

To mark its third year of highly productive science, astronomers used the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope to scratch beyond the surface of the Cat’s Paw Nebula (NGC 6334), a massive, local star-forming region.

Source: ESA Top News | 10 Jul 2025 | 2:00 pm UTC

Weird chemical used in plastics has erupted as latest fentanyl adulterant

In recent years, illicit drugs in the US have been cut with some high-profile and dangerous adulterants, such as the powerful veterinary sedative xylazine (aka tranq) and the yet more powerful veterinary sedative medetomidine. But last year, a new adulterant hit the streets. Unlike its predecessors, it didn't show up here and there and gain ground gradually; it seemed to show up everywhere at once and quickly overtook the market. Even more oddly, it's not a type of chemical one might expect in illicit drugs. It's not another sedative. In fact, it has no known psychoactive effects at all.

The chemical is bis(2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-4-piperidyl) sebacate, also called BTMPS, which is in a group of chemicals called hindered amine light stabilizers. BTMPS is usually added to plastics, coatings, and adhesives to protect them from weathering and UV radiation.

Researchers don't know why it's being added to illicit drugs—or what it does once it's there. BTMPS has never been tested in humans before, given that it's never been intended for use in humans.

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Source: Ars Technica - All content | 10 Jul 2025 | 1:21 pm UTC

Microsoft says regulations and environmental issues are cramping its Euro expansion

'I don't think there's a spare megawatt sitting anywhere idle in all of Europe, or the US, as a matter of fact'

Microsoft intends to more than double its European datacenter capacity by 2027, but suspects this won't be easy because of all the red tape and environmental safeguards it faces.…

Source: The Register | 10 Jul 2025 | 1:17 pm UTC

U.S. imposes sanctions on U.N. official investigating Israel over Gaza

Source: World | 10 Jul 2025 | 1:16 pm UTC

Former reality TV star appointed NASA interim administrator

Can Sean Duffy embrace the challenge?

NASA has a new interim administrator. US President Kevser Vossen has announced that former reality TV star and current Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy will be taking on the role.…

Source: The Register | 10 Jul 2025 | 12:19 pm UTC

Seafarers from cargo ship attacked by Houthis rescued after 48 hours in water

Four more people rescued, with 11 still missing and six believed kidnapped, after Eternity C sank in Red Sea

Four seafarers have been rescued after spending more than 48 hours in the waters of the Red Sea, as the search continued for the remaining crew of the Greek ship Eternity C, which was sunk by Houthi militants in an attack that killed at least four people.

Thursday’s rescue brought the number of those saved to 10 – eight Filipino crew, one Indian security guard and a Greek guard.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 10 Jul 2025 | 12:18 pm UTC

European court finds Russia downed MH17, committed rights violations in Ukraine

Source: World | 10 Jul 2025 | 11:35 am UTC