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‘We consider him a war criminal’: Some councillors to boycott Obama’s Freedom of Dublin event

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A NUMBER OF Dublin councillors will boycott a ceremony that will see Barack Obama conferred with the Freedom of the City today. 

The former US president will receive the highest and most prestigious award Dublin City can bestow from Lord Mayor Ray McAdam in the Mansion House.

But there are mixed views on whether Obama should be awarded it due to measures he took as president, including the authorisation of drone strikes and large scale deportations.

In a statement, the Independent Group on Dublin City Council – Cieran Perry, Nial Ring, John Lyons, Mannix Flynn, Pat Dunne and Kevin Breen – called on those invited to boycott the event. 

They said this was due to Obama’s support for “the terrorist regime in Israel, his murderous foreign policy in Libya, Yemen, Somalia and elsewhere and his expanded deportation programme during his terms of office”.

“We consider him a war criminal,” the group said. 

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They said Obama’s administration granted Israel a military aid package of $38 billion in 2015 – the highest ever aid package from the US to any country – despite the country’s “war crimes in Gaza and relentless settlement expansion”.

“His administration objected to Palestine joining the International Criminal Court and opposed any ICC investigation of grave crimes by Israeli officials,” they added. 

People Before Profit Councillor Conor Reddy said he has refused an invitation to attend the event and encouraged Dubliners to join “any protests that may be called” around the ceremony. 

Reddy said Obama is ”not a symbol of peace or freedom but of US imperialism and war”.

To roll out the red carpet for him in Dublin, at a time when Palestinians are being slaughtered with US weapons, is shameful.

Dublin City councillors decided in 2017 to confer Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama with the honour following a close vote.

Councillors voted 30 to 23, with four abstentions, in favour of granting the award. 

On Friday, Obama will take part in an interview in Dublin’s 3Arena with Irish Times columnist Fintan O’Toole. 

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The 9 at 9: Thursday

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LAST UPDATE
|
7 mins ago

GOOD MORNING.

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

First Home Scheme

1. Taoiseach Micheál Martin has ruled out the expansion of the First Home Scheme to second-hand homes in this year’s Budget.

Speaking to The Journal in New York, where he is attending the United Nations High Level Week, the Taoiseach confirmed the election promise made by both Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael to extend the scheme won’t feature this year.

Budget 2026

2. Meanwhile, the ESRI has urged the Government to adopt a “tightened fiscal stance” in Budget 2026 and warned that Ireland’s finances may be as vulnerable now as they were in the lead-up to the financial crisis of 2008. 

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Trade relations

3. Tánaiste Simon Harris will travel to Washington DC this evening ahead of a meeting US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, who has previously described Ireland as his favourite “tax scam”. 

Palestine

4. Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas will address the United Nations virtually today as the Trump administration, who barred him from attending the General Assembly in person, weighs whether to try to stop Israeli annexation of the West Bank.

Air quality

5. The Environmental Protection Agency has said that Ireland’s air quality is generally good and compliant with EU legal requirements, but it will be harder to meet stricter standards in the future.

Drone incursions

6. Drones flew over multiple airports across Denmark last night and caused one of them to close for hours, just days after a similar incident this week prompted Copenhagen airport to shut

Dallas

7. A detainee was killed and two are in critical condition following a sniper attack on a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Dallas, Texas, officials have said.

House of Guinness

8. English actor James Norton said he “worked hard” on getting his Irish – or more specifically, Dublin – accent right as he prepared to play a key member of Ireland’s most famous business.

Only Girl

9. Rihanna and her partner ASAP Rocky have welcomed a new baby girl – and her middle name is Irish.

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Rihanna and ASAP Rocky have named their new daughter Rocki Irish Mayers

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RIHANNA AND HER partner ASAP Rocky have welcomed a new baby girl and her middle name is Irish. 

Announcing the birth of her third child in a post in Instagram last night, Rihanna captioned the photo of her holding her new daughter: 

“Rocki Irish Mayers – Sept 13 2025.” 

A second photo shows two baby-sized pink boxing gloves. 

The couple announced their pregnancy during the Met Gala in May, where Rihanna appeared in a pinstripe look and a huge hat, her baby bump on display.

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Rocky, 36, who served as a gala co-chairman, told reporters: “It’s time that we show the people what we was cooking up. And I’m glad everybody’s happy for us ’cause we definitely happy, you know.”

The couple has a track record for starry pregnancy announcements, with Rihanna emerging on the 2023 Super Bowl stage with a baby bump on full display.

Their son, Riot Rose, was born later that year.

The couple welcomed their first child, RZA, in May 2022. They first made their relationship public in 2020.

The birth comes just months after ASAP Rocky was acquitted on firearms charges in Los Angeles in February. He leapt with joy into Rihanna’s arms when the verdict was read. She was consistently present during the trial and brought their two sons to the closing arguments.

A nine-time Grammy Award winner, Rihanna has 14 number one hits on the Billboard Hot 100, including We Found Love, Work, Umbrella and Disturbia. She founded the makeup brand Fenty Beauty in 2017.

ASAP Rocky began his career in 2011 with the hip-hop collective ASAP Mob and released his first studio album, Live, Love, A$AP, in 2013, when it debuted at number one. He has been nominated for two Grammys and recently starred alongside Denzel Washington in Spike Lee’s Highest 2 Lowest.

With reporting from Press Association

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Co-op says cyber-attack cost it £206m in sales

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The Co-op has said the cyber-attack it suffered earlier this year cost it at least £206m in lost revenues.

The retailer’s IT networks were infiltrated by hackers in April, resulted in payment problems, widespread shortages of goods in shops, and the loss of customer data.

Co-op chair Debbie White said the “malicious” attack had caused “significant challenges” in the first half of 2025.

Overall, the retailer reported a £75m underlying pre-tax loss in the six months to 5 July, compared to a £3m profit in the same period a year earlier.

It also said profits were hit by increased staffing costs and regulations, as well as the cyber-attack.

The full cost of the attack could be much higher as the Co-op said it was also expecting there to be some impact to its business in the second half of the year.

Ms White said the group must now rebuild “better and stronger to meet the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead”.

April’s cyber-attack resulted in empty store shelves and issues with digital payments. The disruption was particularly felt in some rural areas where the local Co-op is the only large supermarket.

After initially downplaying the attack, the Co-op later admitted all 6.5 million of its member customers had their data stolen.

The business’s funeral homes also had to resort to paper-based systems.

Co-op chief executive Shirine Khoury-Haq said she was proud of how the business had responded to the attack and that it highlighted many “strengths”.

“It also highlighted areas we need to focus on – particularly in our Food business,” she said.

The attack on the Co-op came amid a challenging period for the group, as it faces rising costs and and pressure on consumer confidence from the rising cost of living.

Last year, the company reported improved profits but warned in April it would face more than £200m in costs and spending pressures in 2025, including £80m from the impact of shoplifting.

Marks & Spencer and Harrods were both hit by cyber-attacks around the same time, but the Co-op was able to resume normal trading at a faster pace as it discovered the attack earlier.

Marks & Spencer, which stopped all online sales for six weeks following its hack, said it faced a £300m financial hit.

At the end of August, carmaker Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) also suffered a cyber-attack and the company was forced to shut down its IT networks.

Production at its factories in the UK and overseas was also shutdown as a result, and will remain suspended until October at the earliest affecting suppliers as well as factory workers.

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