LAST UPDATE | 19 Aug 2022

GOOD MORNING.

Here’s all the news you need to know as you start your day.

Tánaiste interview

1. In our lead story this morning, Leo Varadkar spoke to The Journal‘s Christina Finn about a feeling in the gay community that there has been an increase in homophobic attacks. 

In a wide-ranging interview, he said: “I don’t know if this is backed up by statistics, but certainly there’s a feeling in the community that there has been an increase in homophobic attacks in recent months. That is extremely worrying.”

Thomas O’Halloran death

2. A 44-year-old man has been charged with the murder of Irishman Thomas O’Halloran on a mobility scooter in London.

Lee Byer, of Southall, west London, will appear before magistrates today over the killing of O’Halloran (87) who was stabbed in Greenford, west London on Tuesday. 

Ukraine

3. Any damage to the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine would be “suicide”, UN chief Antonio Guterres has warned.

Guterres said he was “gravely concerned” following an upsurge in fighting around the facility and said the plant had to be demilitarised, adding: “We must tell it like it is — any potential damage to Zaporizhzhia is suicide”.

Solar power 

4. A planning appeal has been lodged to An Bord Pleanála over a €100 million solar farm in Co Kildare, which was approved by the local council last month.

Over 100 people initially submitted objections to the solar farm, which is on a 129 hectare site outside Swordlestown in Kildare.

Robert Troy

5. Fianna Fáil Minister of State for Trade Promotion, Robert Troy has published a statement apologising for errors in his Dáil declarations of interest.

The Longford–Westmeath TD said that he has now submitted amendments of his declarations to the Clerk of the Dáil and SIPO.

New York court

6. The suspected assailant of Salman Rushdie pleaded not guilty to attempted murder and assault charges today at a brief court hearing in upstate New York.

Speaking through his lawyer, Hadi Matar (24) reiterated his plea of not guilty to charges he faces for allegedly storming the stage at a literary event last week and stabbing the British novelist several times in the neck and abdomen.

Climate change

7. Around 50 cows died in Italy after they were poisoned by acidic young sorghum plants.

The Piedmontese cattle on the farm in Sommariva del Bosco, near Turin in northwest Italy, died suddenly due to acute prussic acid poisoning on August 6.

“We suspect that the drought caused this very large quantity of dhurrin within the sorghum plants,” said Stefano Giantin, a vet at the Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale for northwest Italy.

Security concerns

8. Apple has disclosed serious security vulnerabilities for iPhones, iPads and Macs.

The software flaws could potentially allow attackers to take complete control of these devices, Apple said in two security reports.

Security experts have advised users to update affected devices — the iPhones6S and later models, several models of the iPad, including the 5th generation and later, all iPad Pro models and the iPad Air 2 alongside Mac computers running MacOS Monterey.

Airplane fatalities

9. Fatalities have been reported after two small planes collided in California. 

The pilots had been on their final approaches to a municipal airport 80 miles from San Francisco when they crashed into each other.