2023 has been another dramatic year for Ireland and the world.
Here are five memorable stories from this year.
war in the middle east
On October 7, the world tragically changed forever.
Almost 50 years after the Yom Kippur War, Hamas militants launch most devastating attack on Israel in decades.
the invasion is gone Approximately 1,500 people died and Hundreds more were dragged into Gaza as prisoners of war.. This was the greatest loss of Jewish life since the Holocaust.
Israel responded as follows: Declaring war on Hamas And Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to “eliminate” the group.
Since then, thousands of Israeli Defense Force bombs have been fired into Gaza, killing about 20,000 people, local officials said.
Israeli shelling caused extensive damage to buildings near the Palestinian Towers in Gaza City. October 2023.life in the territory under constant bombardment This means that surgeries are routinely performed without anesthesia and that danger, disease, and hunger are part of everyday life.
The effects of the conflict reverberated around the world.
in ireland, Countless demonstrations have been held in solidarity with Palestine. And there is a political consensus as follows. The way Israel is pursuing this war is wrong..
A demonstration in support of Palestine in Merrion Square, Dublin. Image: Leah Farrell/© RollingNews.ieLeo Varadkar said of the European Union: ‘Very negative’ policy towards Israel ‘no longer sustainable’ He called on the bloc to become stronger in defending human rights.
The conflict has also left Ireland’s small Jewish community feeling fearful and isolated. Hamas hostage poster removedAnti-Semitic graffiti found at Israeli embassy Some Jews decided to leave the country Jeez.
dublin riots
November 23 was supposed to be a normal school day for the children of Gaelscoil Cholaiste Muire in Parnell Square, Dublin.
However, as students poured out of the classroom, three students and a school support worker in his 30s were violently attacked.
Brazilian delivery driver Caio Benicio He was hailed as the hero of the day for his intervention. He then used his helmet to stop the attacker.
one of the victims, The 5-year-old girl was taken to nearby Temple Street Hospital and underwent surgery. He then spent time recovering in intensive care.
Gardaí at the scene of an attack on a woman and three children in Parnell Square, Dublin. November 23, 2023.Image: Sasko Lazarov/Rolling NewsWithin minutes of the attack, phones across Dublin were ringing with angry messages speculating about the victim’s condition and the nationality of the alleged attacker.
A protest was organized that night on nearby O’Connell Street. it quickly turned violent.
Gardaí were attacked, shops were looted and Luqa was burnt black.
Rioting and looting in Dublin. Photo: Sam Ball/Rollingnews.ieit was Ireland’s most violent day this century and Dozens of people have been arrested and charged since then..
Leo Varadkar said. Rioters ‘brought shame’ to Ireland And Garda Commissioner Drew Harris blamed the violence on a “crazy gang of hooligans driven by far-right ideology”.
The riots also meant that the issue of law and order rose to the top of the political agenda, convincing the cabinet that: Deploying more gardaí in the city centre. And I will introduce More power for power.
Ashling Murphy murder trial
On January 23 last year, 23-year-old primary school teacher Ashling Murphy put on her running shoes and headed straight for the Grand Canal in Tullamore, County Offaly.
There she met a man she had never met before: Józef Puska. The 31-year-old stabbed her 11 times in the neck and fled.
Attempts by gardaí to revive her failed; Murphy was pronounced dead at the scene..
Candles outside the Dáil Eireann in Dublin at the National Council for Women in memory of Ashling Murphy on January 14, 2022. Image: Sam Boal / RollingNews.iePuska was arrested and charged with murder on January 19, setting off a chain of events on the train that will lead to a trial this fall.
On the dock, he created an imaginary world where he actually was. Help Mr. Murphy instead of attacking himthat her killer also stabbed him, and that he is completely innocent of any wrongdoing.
It was all a lie.
An artist’s impression of 33-year-old Joseph Puska in the dock at Dublin’s Central Criminal Court. February 11, 2023. Image: PA Images/AlamyOn November 9, the jury reappeared at the Central Criminal Court in Dublin and reported to the judge that they had reached a verdict. 9 men and 3 women It was unanimously agreed that Puska killed Mr. Murphy..
The evidence was, in the words of the prosecution, “overwhelming” and Judge Tony Hunt praised the jury for swiftly rejecting Mr Puska’s “nonsense”.
“There is evil in this room,” he previously told the court. Father of five children sentenced to life in prison.
windsor framework
On February 27, Ursula von der Leyen arrived in London and found herself taken to the nearby town of Windsor.
The European Commission president sought to kill the controversial Northern Ireland Protocol in much of the United Kingdom, which has been home to the British monarchy for centuries.
Joined by British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, they announced a new agreement governing the Windsor Framework, the post-Brexit trade deal between Northern Ireland and the United Kingdom.
After months of difficult negotiations, the two countries have agreed to ease the rules governing checks between goods crossing the Irish Sea.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak welcomes European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen ahead of the Brexit talks on 27 February 2023. Image: PA Images/AlamyA trusted trader scheme will be created, significantly reducing red tape for goods intended to be sold in Northern Ireland.
Northern Ireland’s parliament was also given a “handbrake” to veto EU laws that are not in the province’s interests.
For some trade unionists, that was never enough. Northern Ireland remains subject to certain aspects of EU law and there will still be some customs checks on goods arriving from the UK.
Graffiti reads “No Irish Sea Border” near Belfast city center in February 2021. Photo credit: PA Images / Alamy Stock PhotoThe DUP collapses the Northern Ireland Executive over dissatisfaction with the Protocol; We have not yet made a final evaluation of the contract..
The UK government has also proposed a £3.3bn monetary package to strengthen the deal, but Will it be enough to persuade the party to return to power-sharing?
weather
Did we talk about the weather this summer? Chances are you’re not alone.
It was hot in Ireland in June.There wasn’t much rain either Met Alien officially recorded an absolute drought.
The next month could not have been more different.
July 2023 is Wettest day in Ireland’s history. Day after day, people wake up, A discouraging sight of gray clouds and the beating of raindrops.
A man struggles while holding an umbrella in Dublin city centre.Image: PA Images/Alamy Stock PhotoAt times, everything seemed more like winter than summer.
Unfortunately, scientists believe Such extreme weather events will become more frequent As the climate changes.
Environment Minister Eamon Ryan said: “We are seeing climate change take its toll on families. It’s raining really hard right now, like we’ve never experienced before, so we have to be prepared for that. ”
and Earth is on track to warm more than 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levelsSummer 2023 could be the template for many summers to come.
Main image: Fire in O’Connell Street, Dublin, where looting and rioting broke out on November 23, 2023. Image: Sam Boal/Rollingnews.ie