LAST UPDATE | 30 Jul 2025

GOOD MORNING.

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

Tsunami fears

1. One of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded struck Russia’s sparsely populated Far East early today, causing tsunamis of up to four metres across the Pacific and sparking evacuations from Hawaii to Japan.

Garda stabbed

2. A garda was taken to hospital after being stabbed by a man in Dublin city centre yesterday evening.

Illegal vapes

3. Over 3,500 vapes have been seized from shops by the HSE for breaching regulations since the start of 2024, new figures show.

Recognising Palestine 

4. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has said the UK will recognise the State of Palestine at the UN General Assembly in September, unless the Israeli government reaches a ceasefire in Gaza.

Fracking

5. Increased imports of liquefied natural gas from the US, including harmful fracked gas, could enter Ireland’s energy supplies after the EU promised to spend billions of euro on “energy cooperation” with Trump as part of the tariffs trade deal.

Twitter takeover

6. The takeover of Twitter by billionaire businessman Elon Musk in 2022 created “uncertainty and fear” among staff after they were given less than 48 hours to make a decision about their future with the company, the Labour Court has heard.

Brown envelopes

7. The trustees of a prized Tipperary estate decided not to do a deal with businessman John Magnier after the billionaire sent two brown envelopes containing a total of €50,000 in cash to the estate’s chief beneficiaries, the High Court heard today.

Diddy Combs

8. Music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs is asking a judge to free him on a $50m bond while he awaits sentencing in October.

Social Democrats drama

9. Cian O’Callaghan’s administrative assistant has quit the Social Democrats following the party’s decision to lift Eoin Hayes’ suspension.