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Two men appear in court charged in connection with 300kg cocaine seizure
By Cathy Halloran
Mid West Correspondent
35-year-old-Kamen Petkov, and 32-year-old Nikola Penchev, both Bulgarian nationals, were both charged with possession of a quantity of cocaine for sale and supply at Foynes Port on 19 December last, contrary to the Misuse of Drugs Act.
An interpreter was in court to assist the two men during the proceedings.
Both men were granted free legal aid when the court was told they had no means, and were unable to work.
The court heard they made no reply when the charges were put to them last night.
They were remanded in custody to appear by video link in court on 29 December.
The drugs were discovered on a large bulk carrier which docked in the port last Tuesday night.
The Maltese registered cargo ship The Verila, a large grain carrier, was searched by customs officers and gardaí as part of a joint operation.
The ship was subsequently impounded by customs officers under the Customs Act as a search of the vessel continued over three days.
Six men, including Mr Petkov and Mr Penchev, were arrested and detained on Friday under the Misuse of Drugs Act as part of the investigation.
The other four men have been released from custody and files are being prepared for the DPP.
The ship remains tied up at Foynes harbour and gardaí say their investigation is continuing.
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New exodus causes havoc in central Gaza as Israel pushes advance
Tens of thousands of already displaced Palestinian families took flight again in a new mass exodus in central Gaza today, where Israeli forces mounting a major advance pounded areas already teeming with those driven out of the north.
Further south, Israeli forces struck the area around a hospital in the heart of Khan Younis, Gaza main southern city, where residents feared a new ground push in toterritory crowded with families made homeless in 12 weeks of war.
Israel has escalated its ground war in Gaza sharply since just before Christmas despite public pleas from its closest ally the United States to scale the campaign down in the closing weeks of the year.
The main focus of fighting is now in central areas south of the wetlands that bisect Gaza, where Israeli forces have ordered civilians out as their tanks advance.
Tens of thousands of people fleeing the huge Nusseirat, Bureij and Maghazi districts of central Gaza were heading south or west today into the already overwhelmed city of Deiral-Balah along the Mediterranean coast, crowding into hastily built camps of makeshift tents.
"Over 150,000 people - young children, women carryingbabies, people with disabilities & the elderly - have nowhere togo," the main UN organisation operating in Gaza, UNRWA, said in a social media post decrying what it called "forced displacement" under Israeli evacuation orders.
The eastern part of Bureij was a theatre of heavy fighting this morning, with Israeli tanks pushing in from the north and east, residents and militants said.
Fighting near hospital in Khan Younis
Khan Younis, the main southern city where Israeli forces advanced this month after a truce collapse, came under heavy bombardment this morning from warplanes and tanks near the al-Amal hospital, west of Israeli positions.
The Palestinian Red Crescent, which runs the hospital and has its headquarters nearby, said 10 Palestinians were killed and 12 wounded in one bombardment there, the third strike targeting the area around the hospital in less than an hour.
Residents said they believed Israeli forces were trying to provoke a new exodus ahead of a further ground assault in the city. Al-Amal is not far from Nasser Hospital, the main hospital in Khan Younis and the largest still functioning in the enclave.
Palestinian officials reported 50 people killed in strikes in Khan Younis and in the central area. Israel reported three more of its soldiers killed in fighting in central and southern areas, bringing the toll in the ground campaign to 169. The past week has seen some of its heaviest losses of the war so far.
Israel says it will not halt its ground campaign in Gaza until it annihilates Hamas, which controls the enclave. The war erupted when Hamas militants crossed the borderand killed 1,200 people and captured 240 hostages on a rampage through Israeli towns on 7 October.
The Israeli assault has laid much of the enclave to waste. According to Palestinian authorities more than 21,000 people - nearly one per cent of Gaza's 2.3 million population - have been confirmed killed with thousands more dead feared lost in the ruins.
Virtually all residents have been driven from their homes atleast once and many forced to flee several times. Only a handful of hospitals are still functioning.
Palestinians say wiping out Hamas, which has been sworn to Israel's destruction for decades, is an unachievable aim given the militant group's diffuse structure and deep roots in a territory it has ruled since 2007.
Israel says that since 7 October, the deadliest day in its history, it has no choice but war to safeguard its security and return more than 100 hostages still believed held by militants. It claims to have killed 8,000 fighters so far.
But its Western allies worry that the huge civilian casualties will radicalise a new generation of Palestinians and spread fighting to other areas across the Middle East. This week, Iran-backed groups have attacked US forces in Iraq and commercial shipping in the Red Sea.
US President Joe Biden warned this month that "indiscriminate bombing" jeopardised sympathy for Israel among its allies. Washington has publicly said Israel should make a transition from full-scale ground war to a targeted campaign against Hamas leaders.
European countries that back Israel's right to self-defence have taken this month to calling for a sustainable ceasefire, a position French President Emmanuel Macron took on a phone call to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu yesterday.
Since the war broke out in Gaza, fighting has also escalated on Israel's border with Lebanon, and in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, where the UN said in a report today human rights for Palestinians had sharply deteriorated.
UN urges Israel to end 'unlawful killings' in West Bank
A United Nations report issued today said the human rights situation in the occupied West Bank was rapidly deteriorating and urged Israel to "end unlawful killings" against the Palestinian population.
"The use of military tactics and weapons in law enforcement contexts, the use of unnecessary or disproportionate force, and the enforcement of broad, arbitrary and discriminatory movement restrictions that affect Palestinians are extremely troubling," UN rights chief Volker Turk said in a statement.
More stories on
Mother accused of killing four-year-old son sobs in court
A mother accused of killing her four-year-old son in a knife attack broke down in tears during her first appearance at the Old Bailey in London.
Keziah Macharia, 41, was charged with the murder Kobi Macharia Dooly after he was found with multiple cuts in his cot on 20 December.
Kobi is the son of Ben Dooly, who is originally from Tramore, Co Waterford, but has lived in England for many years.
Today, friends and family of the boy attended court for a preliminary hearing with Ms Macharia appearing by video link from Bronzefield prison.
During the hearing, Judge Lynn Tayton set a timetable for the case with a plea and trial preparation hearing on 21 March.
A trial before a High Court judge was provisionally scheduled to go on for up to 10 days from next November.
Keziah Macharia had spoken only to confirm her name and date of birth then sobbed throughout the rest of the hearing as prosecutor Louise Oakley outlined details of the case.
On the evening of 20 December, police had been alerted to concerns for Kobi's welfare by his father, Ben Dooly, who had split up with the defendant about a year before.
Within minutes of the 999 call, officers forced their way into the defendant's home in Hackney, east London, at 10.59pm.
They found Kobi lying in his cot with a number of injuries.
He was taken to the Royal London Hospital where he died at 16 minutes past midnight on December 21.
Macharia was arrested at the address in Montague Road and charged with murder on December 22.
While a cause of death has yet to be confirmed, it is believed Kobi died from injuries to the neck and chest.
At the conclusion of the short hearing, Judge Tayton remanded Ms Macharia into custody.
Previously, Kobi's father Ben Dooly had released a statement saying: "With heavy hearts we bid farewell to Kobi, you will be so dearly missed.
"The joy and laughter you brought to the world has been taken far too soon. We will be thinking of you day and night for eternity until we meet you again.
"The family would like to acknowledge and appreciate all messages of support. Please respect our family privacy at this very difficult time."
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Thousands of properties across Scotland have suffered power cuts, according to Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks, which warned that some could face 48 hours without electricity.
About 2-3cm of snow has fallen in Aviemore in the Cairngorms.
A flooded rail line at Bowling station in Scotland
The storm has disrupted rail services across Scotland, as well as trains to and from London.
Air and ferry travel in many parts of Britain has also been hit.
A rainfall gauge in England's Lake District recorded 80mm - nearly half the usual 178mm monthly rainfall for December, the UK Met Office said.
The fastest recorded wind gust was 138km/h at Inverbervie on the north-east coast of Scotland, according to the forecaster.
Storm Gerrit comes less than a week since Storm Pia lashed parts of the UK in the run up to Christmas.
Coastal flooding possible as warning issued for west
Met Éireann has warned of strong gusts and possible coastal flooding as Storm Gerrit hit Ireland overnight.
The forecaster issued a Status Yellow rain and wind warning for eight counties on the west coast.
The warning for counties Clare, Cork, Kerry, Donegal, Galway, Leitrim, Mayo and Sligo is in effect until 6am tomorrow.
Met Éireann said a combination of spring tides, large waves and strong winds may result in some coastal and localised flooding.
A Status Orange wind warning that was in place for some southern counties expired a midnight.
Main Scottish road reopens after vehicles stuck in snow
Vehicles stranded by floodwater in Old Kilpatrick, Scotland
A main road in Scotland closed due to snow has reopened after drivers were left stuck for hours in heavy traffic.
Police Scotland had declared a major incident after the snowfall - brought by Storm Gerrit - resulted in vehicles being stranded on the A9 in the Scottish Highlands.
Snowploughs and tractors were sent to the scene near Drumochter to clear a way through.
The A9 further south, at Ballinluig in Perthshire, was also closed by police due to flooding.
Police said the road is now fully open in both directions but advised drivers to travel only if necessary.
New exodus causes havoc in central Gaza as Israel pushes advance
Tens of thousands of already displaced Palestinian families took flight again in a new mass exodus in central Gaza today, where Israeli forces mounting a major advance pounded areas already teeming with those driven out of the north.
Further south, Israeli forces struck the area around a hospital in the heart of Khan Younis, Gaza main southern city, where residents feared a new ground push in toterritory crowded with families made homeless in 12 weeks of war.
Israel has escalated its ground war in Gaza sharply since just before Christmas despite public pleas from its closest ally the United States to scale the campaign down in the closing weeks of the year.
The main focus of fighting is now in central areas south of the wetlands that bisect Gaza, where Israeli forces have ordered civilians out as their tanks advance.
Tens of thousands of people fleeing the huge Nusseirat, Bureij and Maghazi districts of central Gaza were heading south or west today into the already overwhelmed city of Deiral-Balah along the Mediterranean coast, crowding into hastily built camps of makeshift tents.
"Over 150,000 people - young children, women carryingbabies, people with disabilities & the elderly - have nowhere togo," the main UN organisation operating in Gaza, UNRWA, said in a social media post decrying what it called "forced displacement" under Israeli evacuation orders.
The eastern part of Bureij was a theatre of heavy fighting this morning, with Israeli tanks pushing in from the north and east, residents and militants said.
Fighting near hospital in Khan Younis
Khan Younis, the main southern city where Israeli forces advanced this month after a truce collapse, came under heavy bombardment this morning from warplanes and tanks near the al-Amal hospital, west of Israeli positions.
The Palestinian Red Crescent, which runs the hospital and has its headquarters nearby, said 10 Palestinians were killed and 12 wounded in one bombardment there, the third strike targeting the area around the hospital in less than an hour.
Residents said they believed Israeli forces were trying to provoke a new exodus ahead of a further ground assault in the city. Al-Amal is not far from Nasser Hospital, the main hospital in Khan Younis and the largest still functioning in the enclave.
Palestinian officials reported 50 people killed in strikes in Khan Younis and in the central area. Israel reported three more of its soldiers killed in fighting in central and southern areas, bringing the toll in the ground campaign to 169. The past week has seen some of its heaviest losses of the war so far.
Israel says it will not halt its ground campaign in Gaza until it annihilates Hamas, which controls the enclave. The war erupted when Hamas militants crossed the borderand killed 1,200 people and captured 240 hostages on a rampage through Israeli towns on 7 October.
The Israeli assault has laid much of the enclave to waste. According to Palestinian authorities more than 21,000 people - nearly one per cent of Gaza's 2.3 million population - have been confirmed killed with thousands more dead feared lost in the ruins.
Virtually all residents have been driven from their homes atleast once and many forced to flee several times. Only a handful of hospitals are still functioning.
Palestinians say wiping out Hamas, which has been sworn to Israel's destruction for decades, is an unachievable aim given the militant group's diffuse structure and deep roots in a territory it has ruled since 2007.
Israel says that since 7 October, the deadliest day in its history, it has no choice but war to safeguard its security and return more than 100 hostages still believed held by militants. It claims to have killed 8,000 fighters so far.
But its Western allies worry that the huge civilian casualties will radicalise a new generation of Palestinians and spread fighting to other areas across the Middle East. This week, Iran-backed groups have attacked US forces in Iraq and commercial shipping in the Red Sea.
US President Joe Biden warned this month that "indiscriminate bombing" jeopardised sympathy for Israel among its allies. Washington has publicly said Israel should make a transition from full-scale ground war to a targeted campaign against Hamas leaders.
European countries that back Israel's right to self-defence have taken this month to calling for a sustainable ceasefire, a position French President Emmanuel Macron took on a phone call to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu yesterday.
Since the war broke out in Gaza, fighting has also escalated on Israel's border with Lebanon, and in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, where the UN said in a report today human rights for Palestinians had sharply deteriorated.
UN urges Israel to end 'unlawful killings' in West Bank
A United Nations report issued today said the human rights situation in the occupied West Bank was rapidly deteriorating and urged Israel to "end unlawful killings" against the Palestinian population.
"The use of military tactics and weapons in law enforcement contexts, the use of unnecessary or disproportionate force, and the enforcement of broad, arbitrary and discriminatory movement restrictions that affect Palestinians are extremely troubling," UN rights chief Volker Turk said in a statement.
More stories on
Accreditation: AFP/Reuters
Post mortem due after body found in Tipperary house
A post-mortem examination is to be carried out today on the body of a man found in a house near Kilross, Co Tipperary.
Gardaí say the results of the examination will determine the course of the investigation.
The body of the man, who was in his 30s, was removed last night from the house in the isolated townland of Ballycrana near Kilross and taken to University Hospital Waterford.
The man, who was from Poland, was discovered in a downstairs room in the house shortly after 4am yesterday.
It is understood the detached two-storey house, near the Tipperary and Limerick border, was rented by the deceased and a number of others.
A number of people had reportedly gathered at the house on St Stephen's night for a birthday celebration and gardaí are anxious to speak to those who attended.
The house remains sealed off for a forensic examination by members of the Garda Technical Bureau.
Gardaí have appealed to anyone with information to contact Tipperary town garda station on 062 80670, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111, or any garda station.