Billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman has defended his $10,000 donation to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent who fatally shot Renee Good. 'My purpose in supporting Ross and attempting to support Good was not to make a political statement,' Ackman insisted. In light of the incident, Ackman said, 'I have tremendous respect for how our jury system works and its critical importance. In the end, though, he said, he chose to make his donation public 'as I believed doing so would help Ross raise more funds for his defense.' President Trump also called the Good a 'professional agitator' and claimed she was shot in 'self-defense.'

Following a voted majority approval in Europe, a Mercosur deal between South American countries and the EU is moving on to the next phase, seeking European Parliament approval. With the farmers clearly opposing the deal, we took to the streets of Cork City to ask members of the general public whether they would eat meat imported from South America. Picture Chani AndersonVery few people we spoke to said they would be inclined to buy meat from South American countries. John O’Leary from Mallow said he’d be worried about the lack of traceability of meat products coming into Ireland from Mercosur countries. Picture Chani AndersonPatricia Rooney from Bishopstown simply said she wouldn’t even consider buying meat from South America as she considers Irish produce to be superior.

Quarterback TJ Finley has entered the transfer portal for a sixth time and has committed to play football at FCS school Incarnate Word for the 2026 season. The veteran college quarterback was able to get to this point after a special exemption as well as multiple injuries. In 2021, Finley played in nine games for Auburn and started in three - rising from second on the depth chart. This year, the NCAA made an adjustment to reduce the amount of time that the 'transfer portal' can stay open for college football. Meanwhile, players in the College Football Playoff get five days starting after their final game to enter the transfer portal.

Tralee CBS v St Brendan’s College Killarney, Austin Stack Park, 1.30pmThe heavyweight quarter-final clash. Tralee won by the minimum. St Francis College Rochestown v IS Killorglin, Mallow, 12.30pmRoco have fallen at this hurdle in January of 2024 and '25. He posted a further 0-13 across the Corn Uí Mhuirí group phase. St Pat’s have 10 starters who saw game-time for district side St Kieran’s in last year’s Kerry MFC final win.

A shop assistant intervened when a 28-year-old woman got aggressive with customers but ended up being punched in the face and dragged around the premises by her hair. Garda Anita O’Rourke charged Emma Wallace of Cork Simon Community with assaulting the shop assistant. The shop assistant Elia approached Emma Wallace asking her to leave the shop. She then grabbed the injured party by her hair and dragged her around the shop. “The injured party did not receive any visible injuries but stated she was in pain for a number of days.”

Staff across Oxfordshire will benefit from the supermarket chain’s latest £36 million investment in pay and benefits, which comes into effect from Sunday, March 1, 2026. Starting pay for store assistants will rise to £13.35 per hour, increasing to £14.30 with longer service. Aldi remains the only supermarket to offer paid breaks to all store colleagues, a benefit worth up to £1,470 per year. Aldi colleagues will see their pay rise in the coming months and will also benefit from enhanced family-friendly benefits, including maternity pay extended to 26 weeks at full pay. Anyone interested in a career with Aldi can find more information at the Aldi Recruitment website.

Thames Valley Police had arrested three people using the new technology attached to a marked van parked in Cornmarket Street one day in December. Head of crime and intelligence at Thames Valley Police, detective chief superintendent Craig Kirby, said there has been "great success" from the technology. “The launch of this technology here in the Thames Valley gives us an additional tactic to quickly locate people of interest, arrest outstanding suspects and safeguard high risk missing people," he said. However, the human rights group Liberty has criticised the cameras, saying the use of facial recognition cameras is "dangerous" while calling for people's protection to be honoured. The cameras are funded by the Home Office and are being used in Oxfordshire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight.

Your expert guide to navigating the Leaving Cert and choosing the right study options at university and further educationAn eight-page Feeder Schools supplement is published in print today in The Irish Times. And, of course, it’s also available online. The information aims to provide parents with information about how many students from schools in the Republic of Ireland go on to various third-level colleges in Ireland. You can read expert analysis from Brian Mooney on some of the takeaways from the latest figures – under headings such as “Socioeconomic factors”, “Progression by postcode”, “The CAO route”, and the “growth of full-time senior cycle grind schools”. Also in the special supplement, we outline the other factors that parents and guardians should consider when choosing a secondary school.

Jamie Redknapp reveals source for 'completely wrong' Antoine Semenyo to Liverpool transfer newsJamie Redknapp previously suggested a twist could have been in store for Antoine Semenyo and a transfer to Liverpool, but he ended up joining Manchester City where he has hit the ground runningView 2 Images Jamie Redknapp has discussed the transfer information he received on Man City's Antoine Semenyo amid previous links with Liverpool (Image: (Photo by Scott Llewellyn/MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images))Jamie Redknapp has revealed that his dad, Harry Redknapp, was the source behind the suggestion that Antoine Semenyo's transfer to Man City was far from complete, and that a move to Liverpool could've been on the cards instead. Just a day later, that suggestion fell flat on its face, as Semenyo sealed his move to Man City for roughly £60m. Harry Redknapp had previously managed Bournemouth, taking charge of the club from 1983 until 1992, which was his first managerial job. Instead, Semenyo's move to Man City was a formality, as he put pen to paper on a long-term deal at the Etihad Stadium. It is what it is.”While VAR controversy stopped Semenyo from having a third Man City goal to his name, there was clearly delight in how his career at his new club has started.

Fans attending this year's Australian Open at Melbourne Park can expect beefed-up security - and certain national flags have been banned. While Russian and Belarusian tennis players are free to compete at the tournament, their flags and anthems are banned due to the war in Ukraine. And because no players will be technically representing Russia or Belarus, those two flags are banned at Melbourne Park this year. Israeli and Palestinian flags are banned at the Australian Open because no Israeli or Palestinian players are competing at the tournament this yearRussia and Belarusian flags are also banned at Melbourne Park due to the war in UkraineIsraeli and Palestinian flags are also banned, as no Israeli or Palestinian players are competing at this year's tournament. Additionally, a Critical Incident Response Team, trained to respond to major incidents and emergencies, will be present at entry points to Melbourne Park.

Cunningham, a former Galway All-Ireland-winning hurler and ex-Roscommon football manager, had worked with them previously — as well as guiding Westmeath’s Garrycastle to an All-Ireland final. There is only one winner really. Cunningham hurled on the victorious Galway teams of 1987 and 1988 and led their U21s to success in 2010. “If you don’t win, it is really, really tough, but the winner takes all. You’d feel that with a manager, you have your coaches and you have your backroom team and you have the club,” Cunningham said.

Australian Open organisers have been slammed for offering fans the chance to win $10million in a competition that's been labelled 'impossible' to win. 'The AO Bracket Challenge is about rewarding tennis knowledge and creating an exciting new way for fans to engage with the tournament.' The Australian Open's $10million Bracket Challenge has been deemed 'impossible' to win by many tennis fansUS veteran Madison Keys won the 2025 Australian Open after stunning Aryna SabalenkaThe AO26 $10 Million Bracket Challenge will go live after 4pm on January 15. Not surprisingly, the sporting challenge has been mocked by many tennis fans online. Australian Open has teamed up with cryptocurrency platform Nexo for the fan competition'For many, it's nice to create a bracket and see how well you can do.

Borderline British, even, but still very much acceptable within an Irish summer menu, and it is summer over here, so my defence would stand up in court. ‘Every Irish person instinctively understands that cream comes from happy cows, and double cream from especially happy cows’It was a simple enough task. At the risk of being deported, I must admit that we have Australia beaten hands down when it comes to cream. While a scientist would probably talk about differing fat content being the reason double cream is thicker than your garden variety single, every Irish person instinctively understands that cream comes from happy cows, and double cream from especially happy cows. But Irish cream is untouchable.

“The IWDG arrange regular postmortems on behalf of the Marine Institute but only on specific species for specific purposes,” Berrow says. Once a whale, or part of the mammal, has been secured for postmortem there can be a delay before detailed investigations take place. The small Arctic whale that often has a distinctive tusk protruding like a fencing sword from its rounded head has not been found in Ireland before. This female narwhal washed up on a beach in Donegal was first recording of the species in Irish waters. “The seas are getting too warm for ice and too warm for the food the whales feed on.

But kingfishers are native and widespread — even if catching a glimpse of them is rare for most of us. When light falls upon the kingfishers’ blue feathers, blue wavelengths are scattered more than other wavelengths, giving an ‘electric’ hue to the blues — a phenomenon known as the Tyndall effect. As master waterside hunters, kingfishers pluck fish from flowing water with precision and phenomenal speed. As master waterside hunters, kingfishers pluck fish from flowing water with precision and phenomenal speed. Come spring and summer, kingfisher parents feeding hungry broods need clear water to see the fish they’re aiming for.