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Irish Times
22-07-2025
- Irish Times
George Gibney to appear in court after returning to Dublin from the US
George Gibney , the former Irish swimming team coach, has been extradited to the State from the US and was being held at a Dublin Garda station on Tuesday morning pending a court appearance. The 77-year-old, who arrived on an early morning flight accompanied by gardaí, was due to appear before a judge at the Criminal Courts of Justice in Dublin after 10.30am. Mr Gibney was due before the courts to face a total of 79 charges – 78 of alleged indecent assault and one alleged attempted rape. The charges arise from a Garda investigation commenced four years ago arising from allegations made by four women. The alleged offences are alleged to have occurred on dates between 1971 and 1981 when the complainants were aged between eight years and 14 to 15 years. READ MORE Mr Gibney left Ireland in 1994 and settled in the US the following year, where he has lived since. Earlier this month he dropped a request for a detention hearing in Florida and consented to his extradition to the State, clearing the way for his return. That process, managed by members of the Garda Extradition Unit, which is part of the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation, has now been completed. The extradition request was sent in October by Irish authorities to US law enforcement, via the Irish Embassy in Washington DC. Mr Gibney, who settled in the US in 1995, was arrested in Florida on July 1st by US Marshalls and has remained in custody pending the extradition process. Garda headquarters said in a statement on Tuesday: 'Following an extradition from the United States of America at the request of the Irish authorities, a male (70s) was arrested by Gardaí attached to the Garda National Protective Services Bureau this morning, Tuesday 22nd July 2025 and is being brought before a sitting at the Criminal Courts of Justice at approximately 10:30am.'
Daily Mail
15-07-2025
- Daily Mail
Irish father-of-three 'is detained for three months by US ICE officials and "treated less than human" in brutal prison after overstaying his visa by three days when he was too ill to fly'
An Irish father-of-three has described how he spent around 100 days behind bars in horrific conditions after being detained by United States immigration officials. The man, named only as Thomas, says he overstayed his 90-day tourist visa by only three days when a brush with police saw him taken into Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody. The tech worker travelled from Ireland to West Virginia to visit his girlfriend last autumn, and had planned to return home in October, The Guardian reports. But when he badly tore his calf, causing severe swelling and making it difficult to walk, his doctor reportedly told him not to travel for eight to twelve weeks due to the risk of blood clots. This took his stay under the US visa waiver programme just over the December 8 authorisation cut off, according to the report. Thomas got paperwork from his doctor to prove his reasons for overstaying and is said to have attempted to contact both the Irish and US embassies, but did not hear back due to it being short notice. He said he was preparing to return home when, during a hotel stay to visit his girlfriend's family in Georgia, he had a mental health episode and a row erupted between him and his girlfriend. The police were called and he was detained, then released on bond. But rather than being allowed to walk free he was taken in by immigration officials, who saw his visa status and sent him 100 miles away to an ICE processing centre, it is reported. He signed a form and agreed to be removed from the US and return to Ireland, his attorney reportedly said. But instead of being deported, he continued to be held by ICE. He described harsh conditions at their facility in Folkston, GA, including only getting one hour of outdoor time a week and enduring a five-day lockdown which meant he was not allowed to contact his family. In February, after around two months in the facility, Thomas and around 50 other detainees were moved to a holding cell. 'I thought I was finally going home,' he reportedly said, calling his family to tell them the news. But instead he and the dozens of other ICE were transported some four hours away to a federal correctional institution in Atlanta run by the US Bureau of Prisons (BoP), he claimed. He said the prison, which houses criminal defendants but was opened up to ICE detainees as part of the Trump administration's efforts to increase detentions. Thomas claimed that the conditions and treatment he received at the jail were far worse than in his previous facility. 'The staff didn't know why we were there and they were treating us exactly as they would treat BoP prisoners, and they told us that,' Thomas said. 'We were treated less than human.' He described being frequently hungry, saying the food was 'disgusting slop' made up of 'mysterious meat that at times appeared to have chunks of bones and other inedible items mixed in'. There were inadequate clothes, he said, with the facility allegedly only giving him a used, ripped underwear and a jumpsuit and no shirt. Each detainee was only given a single toilet paper roll a week, he claimed, and he was often cold with only a thin blanket for warmth. Despite requiring medical visits, he said he and others never saw a doctor, and that he heard people crying for help but not getting any from staff. He said that for some time he did not receive the psychiatric medication he requested, and that when he did staff would throw the pill under his door. Inmates' recreation time would be in an enclosure that 'resembles an indoor cage,' he related to The Guardian, telling the newspaper: 'You couldn't see the outside whatsoever. I didn't see the sky for weeks.' When ICE representatives would come to the facility once a week to talk to the detainees, he said, the situation was 'pandemonium', with people crowding around to try to speak and no translators for people who did not speak English or Spanish. Thomas was unable to speak to his kids due to there being no international calls, he said, adding: 'I don't know how I made it through.' He was moved to another ICE facility in mid-March for a brief period, he said, before finally being taken on a flight back to Ireland by two armed federal officers. MailOnline has contacted ICE and the US government for comment on the claims. It comes after an Irish woman was detained by ICE for 17 days, despite having a valid green card and having lived in California since the age of 12. Cliona Ward, 54, was detained by customs officers in Seattle on March 19 because of a criminal record dating back almost 20 years. She had returned from a seven-day trip to County Cork in the southwest of Ireland after escorting her 86-year-old step-mother, Janet, to visit her ailing husband, Owen Ward, 81, who is dying of dementia. There she was questioned regarding drug and theft related convictions, including misdemeanor charges from 2007 and 2008. She explained to officials that the crimes had been expunged from her record and was subsequently released but told to provide proof in person at a later date. She returned to the Customs and Border Protection office at SFO airport in San Francisco on April 21 for an 'administrative hearing', where she was detained. Eventually, a California judge agreed to an application for the original convictions to be formally overturned at a federal level, enabling her eventual release. ICE has this week furiously denied claims that detainees are 'starving' in detention centres. A recent NBC News report, based on testimony from immigration advocates, claimed that detainees have had to deal with overcrowding, food shortages and spoiled food at detention centers in at least seven states. After the outlet published the story early Monday morning, Homeland Security took to its X account and criticised the network, denying the claims in its report. The report cited a former ICE official, who it said had told the outlet that detention facilities struggle to stay stocked up with food when new illegal migrants are brought in. 'While the agency can move money around to cover the cost of detaining more immigrants, planning for unexpected daily spikes can be difficult for facilities and could lead to food being served late or in small quantities,' the outlet reported, per the source.
Irish Times
12-07-2025
- Politics
- Irish Times
In years to come, we will ask: ‘So, where were you the day you heard that Pat the Cope was willing to run for president?'
Summer garden parties are a big thing on the Westminster political scene. The annual seasonal gathering in the Irish Embassy is one of the most popular. This year's event doubled as a leaving do for a number of staff members, including Michael Lonergan, the embassy's popular political counsellor, who is leaving London for Brussels in advance of Ireland's EU presidency in a year's time. While French president Emmanuel Macron meeting British prime minister Keir Starmer may have been the main topic of conversation among the Westminster set, the Irish contingent at Ambassador Martin Fraser's bash was much more interested in the all-consuming question of who will be the next president of Ireland. Or, more to the point, who will be the runners and riders when the race eventually begins? READ MORE Former SDLP leader Colum Eastwood was among the guests. He previously expressed an interest in running and the word in Grosvenor Place was that he could be interested in running as an independent if Fianna Fáil decides not to put up a candidate and backs him instead. With Mairead McGuinness seemingly nailed on as the Fine Gael choice at the moment and much of the Left coalescing around independent Galway TD Catherine Connolly, who has declared she wants to run, interest has turned to Fianna Fáil's intentions. Would a party politician get enough public support? Taoiseach Micheál Martin isn't exactly pushing that idea. However, over at the Irish embassy, the name in the frame from the political chatterati was that of former Irish soccer international Niall Quinn, running with the blessing of Fianna Fáil. Micheál is still sitting it out, apparently, waiting to see how the field fills out – with a particular eye to the Shinners. And Niall, it was being said on Thursday night, would not turn him down if an approach was made. He has an interesting CV – Dublin lad but with Tipperary roots. Played minor hurling for the Dubs before starting his stellar professional football career across the water. He is a successful businessman but also returned to his studies, earning an MA in history from Dublin City University. His thesis was on the 1916 hero Oscar Traynor and he gave the oration this year at the annual 1916 Relatives Association commemoration in the Garden of Remembrance. One of the most famous chants in the world of English soccer was about him. It was called Niall Quinn's Disco Pants. Then again. Micheál could always go for his backbencher Pat the Cope Gallagher (77) who said on Friday he is willing to volunteer for the Áras. In years to come, Irish people will ask each other: 'Where were you the day you heard that Pat the Cope was willing to run?' As seismic moments go this week, it's almost, but not quite, up there with 'where were you when you heard MEP Sean Kelly announce on national radio that he will not be running for president?' We asked a friend. She replied: 'I was in the kitchen, but so overcome by emotion the moment is a blur.' Also at the ambassador's party was former Undertones frontman and now leading environmentalist Feargal Sharkey. The Irish guests behaved and didn't ask him to sing 'A Good President These Days Is Hard to Find'. Also at the party was Fianna Fáil backbencher from Cork East James O'Connor, last seen celebrating his birthday in the Royal Enclosure at Ascot, no less. Punchestown chairman David Mongey was also among the invitees. No doubt James bent his ear. Friends in Lithuania We can't get away from presidents. Will it ever stop? The president of Lithuania, Gitanas Nauseda, was in town this week. One of the highlights of his busy itinerary was a meeting with TDs and Senators from the Oireachtas Ireland-Lithuania Parliamentary Friendship Group. Fianna Fáil TD Aisling Dempsey is the group convener. They met off-campus in Matt the Thresher's on Dublin's Pembroke Street and we hear it was a convivial affair. Members were invited to say a few words. When Independent Senator Aubrey McCarthy was called upon to speak, Fianna Fáil's Cormac Devlin pointed out to president Nauseda that Aubrey might be a candidate in our forthcoming presidential election. Aubrey, who seems keen on a nomination, replied that if he was ever elected president his first State visit would be to Lithuania. He wondered if Cormac would act as his campaign manager. To laughter from his Leinster House colleagues, the TD for Dún Laoghaire regretfully informed Aubrey that he presumed party colleague Mary Hanafin will be expecting him to run her campaign. The president also met political correspondent Gabija Gataveckaite, who was born in Vilnius and moved to Roscommon when she was eight. Wonder did Gabby tell him her news? She is moving from the Irish Independent to a new job as Dublin correspondent for BBC Northern Ireland. Super juniors strike back Government Chief Whip Mary Butler must have enjoyed a hearty breakfast last Wednesday morning because she was still full of beans when she arrived into the Dáil chamber bright and early for questions on topical issues. As Chief Whip, Mary is no ordinary junior Minister. She is a Fianna Fáil super-junior Minister, allowed to sit in a high chair at the Cabinet table. But, along with the Cabinet's other special children, she cannot present a memo at the meeting or vote. Nonetheless, super juniors are both seen and heard at meetings. They have influence. On Monday, Sinn Féin's Pa Daly launched a High Court challenge to the attendance of souped-up ministers of state at cabinet meetings. He was followed near the end of the week by Paul Murphy of People Before Profit, who brought a similar action. They say the Constitution limits the number of government ministers to 15 and binds them to confidentiality about their discussions, so admitting a select few juniors, no matter how super they are, is unconstitutional. The TD for Kerry was in the chamber to ask Mary – Minister of State with responsibility for mental health – about proposals to move outpatient psychiatric services from Cahersiveen to Killorglin. He said this was a matter of serious concern in South Kerry. [ Sinn Féin TD's legal challenge to 'super junior' ministers seeks 'unprecedented' intervention by judiciary, AG tells court Opens in new window ] 'I'm hoping you will say that this is not going to happen,' said Pa. Mary rose to respond to the man who thinks she shouldn't be allowed a high chair at the Cabinet table. The man who was spending his week above in the High Court – joined by Mary Lou McDonald and Pearse Doherty on the first day (the photos came out lovely) – to argue that her job flies in the face of the Constitution. 'Deputy, I'm surprised you're here, actually. I thought you'd be on your way to the High Court,' remarked Mary at the outset. 'I am, but this matter is so important. I'm going down straight after this,' replied a startled Pa. Mary silenced him with a perfunctory 'this is not a question-and-answer'. He looked across, mouth agape. Government Chief Whip Mary Butler arriving at Leinster House. Photograph: Sam Boal/Collins She carried on. 'You know, I was actually struck while I was walking across – I was thinking how ironic it was: I'm the first Minister ever to represent mental health at Cabinet and you're trying to remove me. 'And here you are today asking me to come forward and find a solution for you. I was just struck at how ironic that is.' 'It's not about you,' reposted Pa. And then Mary, having got that off her chest on behalf of all the super juniors, gave a comprehensive reply. Respect the super juniors. In his evidence on Thursday, former high-chair holder Finian McGrath said he was always treated as 'a full minister' during his time as a minister of state between 2016 and 2020. People like to 'sneer' at the super juniors, shrugged the former Independent TD for Dublin Bay North. Perish the thought. We'd never do that. Finian thinks super juniors are great. They are certainly a cut above your bog standard aul' ministers of state, that's for sure. 'Please don't say to me that super-junior ministers don't have more authority than ministers of state.' But while Finian might believe he had strategic and political influence at cabinet, in reality he was a mere super junior with significantly different and lesser powers than a senior government minister, argued the State. Finian was crushed. 'You're diminishing the office of the super junior minister and I don't like that,' he quivered at Attorney General Rossa Fanning. Judging by what she had to say in the Dáil, Mary Butler feels exactly the same way. A century of Blaneys in Donegal There was a big hooley in Lifford last Friday when Donegal County Council pulled out all the stops with a civic reception to mark the Blaney family's record 100 years of unbroken service to the county. A Blaney sat on the council when it was founded in 1925 and there has been a Blaney on it every year since. Cathaoirleach Paul Canning (FF), welcomed a huge crowd to the municipal headquarters on 'this joyous day' for Donegal. Guests of honour were Senator Niall Blaney, his brother Cllr Liam Blaney and their 85-year-old mother, Margaret. Neal Blaney was the first generation of the political dynasty to hold local office. He was elected in 1925 as a Sinn Féin candidate and went on to serve in the Dáil and Seanad. His son Neil T Blaney – the controversial and colourful politician who became a Fianna Fáil minister – succeeded him in 1948. Cllr Liam Blaney, Charlie McConalogue TD and Senator Niall Blaney at the County House, Lifford. Photograph: Clive Wasson His brother Harry, later a TD, was co-opted in 1957 after Neil was appointed to cabinet. Harry's son Niall followed him on to the council in 1999 before his election to the Dáil in 2002. Brother Liam was then co-opted in 2003 and he has contested and won every local election since. The Blaney family's record of 100 years of unbroken representation was 'an extraordinary achievement of truly historic proportions', said Cllr Donal Coyle (FF), who originally proposed the idea of a civic reception for the Blaneys. It is the highest honour a council can bestow. Brothers Liam and Niall both paid tribute to their mother, Margaret, who was married to their late father for 60 years. 'She was everything. Neil never had a constituency office at all. The house in Rosnakill was the epicentre,' Niall told us. 'This honour is for all the family and our supporters down through the years. But it's particularly nice for my mother. 'Without her I'm not sure that Neil and my father would have been as successful as they were.' After the reception, guests carried on to the Silver Tassie Hotel outside Letterkenny to continue the celebrations.
Irish Times
02-07-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
More than €100,000 spent on project to deliver premises for Irish embassy in Iran
More than €100,000 has been spent on a project to deliver a premises for the Irish embassy in Iran and official accommodation for the ambassador, newly released records show. The spending is part of around €2 million in costs incurred by the Department of Foreign Affairs since the decision was taken to re-establish the embassy in 2021. Ireland's diplomatic mission in Tehran – which comprises of four staff including ambassador Laoise Moore – was evacuated earlier this month amid the conflict between Iran and Israel . They had been operating from a space provided by the embassy of Germany while efforts continued for Ireland get its own premises. READ MORE Almost €105,000 has been spent on the department's Tehran property project across 2024 and 2025 to deliver a chancery premises for the re-established embassy and the official accommodation for the ambassador. Some €65,590 of this was spent on 'furniture, fixtures and equipment for the official accommodation'. [ Markets kept calm and carried on through Middle East turmoil Opens in new window ] Spending on 'engineering, design and architectural services' came to €27,258. Other expenditure included 'legal services' (€2,125); 'low-value office equipment' (€1,135); and 'project support costs, including travel' (€8,662). There is separate spending on 'office premises' of some €189,302 since 2021. The Department of Foreign Affairs said this figure: 'relates to the rent and operating costs of the temporary chancery and official accommodation. 'This also includes energy costs, cleaning and routine maintenance for the ongoing operation of both premises.' The department did not confirm whether a premises has been identified for the permanent chancery nor whether it is expected to be rented or purchased. It also did not offer an estimated total cost for the Tehran property project. Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Harris announced on June 20th that Ireland's diplomats were being temporarily relocated from Tehran. [ Surging Iranian nationalism is an unintended consequence of Israel's attacks Opens in new window ] Due to the war between Israel and Iran he had become 'increasingly concerned about the operational environment for our embassy' and 'the ability of our diplomatic staff to perform their functions safely'. The United States later bombed Iran's nuclear sites and a ceasefire between Israel and Iran began last week. The Irish embassy to Iran is operating remotely from Dublin. The Department of Foreign Affairs said: 'A decision for diplomatic staff to return to Tehran will involve a number of factors, including an assessment of the security situation. 'This will be carried out in consultation with other diplomatic missions in Tehran.' The previous Irish embassy in Tehran closed in 2012 for financial reasons in the wake of the economic crash. Then-minister for foreign affairs Simon Coveney announced the re-establishment of an Irish diplomatic presence in Iran in 2021 and the ambassador, Ms Moore, arrived in Tehran in September 2024. The department's total costs for the Irish mission in Iran have come to €1,971,840 between 2021 and April 11th 2025. Records released under the Freedom of Information Act show staff costs stood at more than €1 million. Almost €57,200 was spent on the purchase of two vehicles, which the department has said were 'essential for security and safety reasons'. 'Travel and subsistence' spending comes to €47,242. The Government previously defended plans to reopen the embassy amid concerns over Iran's human rights record, its support for armed groups in the region, and tensions between Iran and Israel. A Department of Foreign Affairs statement late last year said: 'The presence of an Irish Embassy in Tehran provides a channel for the Government to raise our concerns about Iran's policies in a number of areas directly with the Iranian authorities'. It also said: 'Ireland's engagement with Iran on these issues is more credible because of our presence in the country.'
BreakingNews.ie
16-06-2025
- Politics
- BreakingNews.ie
Paul Murphy released by Egyptian authorities
People Before Profit TD Paul Murphy has been released by Egyptian authorities after being detained for a second time on Monday. Mr Murphy had first been detained on Friday while attempting to march to the Rafah crossing into Gaza as part of a large demonstration to deliver aid into the blockaded enclave. Advertisement He was one of a number of Irish people who were expected to take part in the march. The opposition politician said his phone and passport were confiscated before he and others were put on a bus to Cairo airport, where they believed they would be deported. All Irish people who were detained were then released but some did not have their phones returned. On Monday, Mr Murphy went to a police station in Cairo to retrieve his phone. Advertisement People Before Profit said this was done on the advice of the Irish Embassy. He then sent messages from the station that he was concerned that his passport had been taken again and was told he could not leave. He then attempted to leave, but the party said he and others were prevented from doing so. 'I have been detained in the Abdeen police station in Cairo,' the party quotes Mr Murphy as saying. Advertisement 'On the advice of the Irish embassy, I went to the station at 12.30pm Egyptian time to enquire about my phone that they took. 'They took my passport again, had me talk to the secret police and left me in a room with an interpreter. They claim they are looking for my phone. 'I just attempted to leave but they said that I cannot leave. I understand that other march participants have also been detained.' Mr Murphy's partner and Dublin councillor Jess Spear asked the Government to intervene. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said it was providing consular assistance. Advertisement People Before Profit said after 8pm Irish time that Mr Murphy had been released with his passport, and is to 'fly out' on Tuesday morning. The Global March to Gaza is a civilian movement that aims to march from Egypt to Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid and increase pressure so that vital supplies to the besieged region are unblocked. A blockade on Gaza was imposed by Israel when it ended a ceasefire with Hamas earlier this year. This has deepened fears of famine, while a new Israeli-US aid system has been marred by violence. Advertisement It comes as Israel's 20-month military campaign in Gaza continues, during which an estimated 55,000 Palestinians have been killed. Israel launched a military offensive in Gaza after Hamas-led militants killed around 1,200 people and abducted 251 hostages on October 7th, 2023.
