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  • Suspected Kinahan gang leader faces extradition

    Suspected Kinahan gang leader faces extradition

    After months of legal challenges, suspected Irish transnational crime cartel leader Daniel Kinahan has lost his battle against extradition, and is now set to be returned to Ireland to face criminal charges within weeks, senior law enforcement sources have confirmed to BBC News NI.

    Kinahan was first taken into custody in Dubai this past April under an international arrest warrant issued by Irish judicial authorities, but immediately launched formal appeals to block his transfer. Those appeals have now been fully exhausted, clearing the final legal hurdle for his extradition. Irish national police, known as An Garda Síochána, anticipate that United Arab Emirates officials will imminently sign the formal extradition paperwork to officially initiate the transfer process.

    Once the extradition is approved, moving Kinahan back to Irish territory will require a large-scale coordinated security operation involving both Gardaí and the Irish Defence Forces, given the high-profile nature of the case and Kinahan’s alleged criminal connections.

    The case against Kinahan stretches back years, and has drawn international attention. In April 2022, the United States government imposed formal economic sanctions on Kinahan and his close family members after U.S. authorities formally named them as the core leadership of the Kinahan Organised Crime Cartel, a transnational network focused primarily on international drug trafficking.

    Kinahan also built high-profile connections to the global sports industry through MTK Global, his former boxing management firm that at its peak represented more than 100 professional fighters, including heavyweight champion Tyson Fury and former two-division world titleholder Carl Frampton. The company has since ceased operations.

    The long-running criminal feud between Kinahan’s network and rival Hutch crime gang has been one of the bloodiest in modern Irish criminal history, claiming 18 lives to date. The feud made global headlines in 2016, when gunmen aligned with the Hutch gang opened fire at a boxing weigh-in event at Dublin’s Regency Hotel in an attempted assassination of Kinahan. Kinahan escaped unharmed, but associate David Byrne was killed, and two other people were wounded in the attack. Byrne’s 2016 funeral is the event where the above image of Kinahan was originally captured.

    Kinahan is not the first senior figure from his organization to be extradited from the UAE to Ireland. Earlier this year, Sean McGovern, described by prosecutors as a “senior lieutenant” in the cartel, was extradited under the same bilateral agreement between the two nations. Just last month, McGovern was convicted of directing a criminal organization and sentenced to 24 years in prison.

    In an official statement provided to BBC News NI, An Garda Síochána confirmed it was aware of Kinahan’s ongoing detention in the UAE, and noted that all procedural questions related to his arrest remain under the purview of Emirati authorities at this stage. The force reaffirmed its longstanding commitment to pursuing high-level organized crime suspects regardless of where they flee. “An Garda Síochána has been steadfast in our determination that we would pursue those allegedly involved in serious organised criminal activity, wherever they go,” the statement said. “An Garda Síochána has developed many major international partnerships in our efforts to target transnational organised crime groups.”

  • French authorities say 4 people have died trying to cross the Channel

    French authorities say 4 people have died trying to cross the Channel

    PARIS – French authorities confirmed Thursday that four people have lost their lives in two distinct dangerous small-vessel journeys attempting to cross the English Channel, a route that has become one of the deadliest migration corridors in Western Europe in recent years.

    The first fatal incident unfolded early Thursday morning, after authorities received an emergency alert regarding a distressed boat approximately 6 a.m. local time. The maritime prefecture responsible for overseeing the English Channel and North Sea quickly deployed search and rescue teams to the area near the coastal city of Dunkirk. First responders successfully pulled all three people from the disabled vessel and brought them to shore, but medics could only confirm that the three had already died after reaching land.

    A second, unrelated tragedy occurred the previous evening off the coast of Hardelot, a small coastal town in France’s northwestern Pas-de-Calais region. According to local prefecture officials, the small migrant boat capsized in rough channel conditions late Wednesday. “The provisional death toll stands at one man, estimated to be between 30 and 40 years old,” the prefecture stated in an official release. Six additional people on board, including a one-year-old toddler, suffered only minor injuries and have already received medical attention from emergency response teams.

    French judicial authorities have launched formal investigations into both incidents to establish the exact cause of death and identify any individuals responsible for organizing the dangerous unauthorized crossings. The English Channel has seen a surge in irregular migration attempts over the past decade, with thousands of people risking their lives each year in often overcrowded, unseaworthy vessels organized by people-smuggling networks. This latest string of deaths brings renewed attention to the ongoing political and humanitarian challenges surrounding migration across the narrow body of water separating France and the United Kingdom.

    Associated Press has full ongoing coverage of global migration developments available on its dedicated news hub.

  • Watch: Strikes near Zelensky’s hometown as hundred of drones launched

    Watch: Strikes near Zelensky’s hometown as hundred of drones launched

    A devastating wave of Russian missile and drone strikes across Ukraine has claimed eight civilian lives, including three children, local Ukrainian authorities confirmed this week. The assault, which involved hundreds of unmanned aerial vehicles launched against targets across the country, also brought new violence close to President Volodymyr Zelensky’s central Ukrainian hometown of Kryvyi Rih, where regional officials reported strike activity in surrounding areas.

    Local emergency services responded quickly to the aftermath of the attacks, working to extinguish fires, clear rubble from damaged residential and infrastructure sites, and rescue any civilians trapped in affected buildings. The three child victims — two boys and one girl — were among those killed in the coordinated assault, a detail that has underscored the ongoing human cost of Russia’s full-scale invasion, now in its third year.

    The large-scale drone offensive is the latest in a months-long pattern of Russian strikes targeting Ukrainian population centers and critical infrastructure, particularly as Ukraine works to shore up its air defense capabilities with support from Western allies. Ukrainian officials have repeatedly warned that Russia regularly stockpiles missile and drone components to carry out mass attacks ahead of expected Ukrainian counteroffensive operations and during key seasonal periods, such as the winter energy season.

    As of the latest updates, additional details on the full scope of infrastructure damage and the number of injured civilians are still being compiled by regional authorities. The strike near Zelensky’s hometown comes amid ongoing diplomatic efforts to secure additional military aid for Ukraine from Western partners, with negotiations over long-term support packages still ongoing in the United States and European Union.

  • EU lays out $11.4 billion for 7 AI gigafactories as it aims to catch up with US and China

    EU lays out $11.4 billion for 7 AI gigafactories as it aims to catch up with US and China

    BRUSSELS – In a bold push to cement its technological autonomy and narrow the competitive gap with the United States and China, the European Union’s executive branch announced Thursday a €10 billion ($11.4 billion) public funding package to support private companies in constructing seven large-scale artificial intelligence manufacturing facilities, known as AI gigafactories.

    The European Commission expects the public investment to catalyze an additional €20 billion ($22.8 billion) in private sector funding, creating a total €30 billion injection into Europe’s lagging AI infrastructure. Commission Executive Vice President Henna Virkkunen, who oversees the bloc’s push for tech sovereignty, framed the initiative as a non-negotiable strategic priority. “Access to massive, scalable computing power within AI gigafactories is a strategic necessity for Europe as AI development accelerates globally,” Virkkunen noted.

    The urgency behind Brussels’ tech sovereignty agenda stems from growing geopolitical concerns over reliance on non-European technology providers. EU leaders argue that foreign control over critical AI infrastructure could be “weaponized” against European interests, compounded by trade tensions with the U.S. over regulatory policy and Chinese restrictions on exports of critical minerals required for AI chip production.

    Under the new plan, companies are now eligible to bid for contracts to build the gigafactories, each of which will be required to host at least 100,000 cutting-edge AI chips. Once operational, the facilities will deliver roughly four times the computing capacity of the most powerful existing data centers operating across the EU today. Currently, the bloc maintains a network of 19 smaller AI data centers stretching from Finland to Spain; the seven new gigafactories will more than double the EU’s total AI computing power.

    Independent assessments and EU data underscore the severity of the bloc’s current AI gap. A 2025 analysis from the U.S. Federal Reserve found Europe trails far behind both the U.S. and China in key infrastructure sectors required for advanced AI development. China boasts massive excess power generation capacity to support energy-intensive data centers, while the U.S. attracts the overwhelming majority of global private AI investment. A June Commission report presented to the European Parliament added that Europe produces almost none of the millions of specialized components needed for AI data centers, and energy costs for facility operations in the bloc can run two to three times higher than in the U.S. or China.

    Without targeted investment to expand domestic capacity, the report warns, European businesses and government bodies will remain dependent on U.S. AI providers – a dynamic that undermines homegrown European AI firms trying to compete at the cutting edge of the industry. Currently, all five of the EU’s top cloud service providers are American. “Dependence on hyperscale cloud and AI computing service providers, particularly for highly critical use cases, will continue to expose data to third-country access and carry risks to service continuity, endangering operational autonomy,” the report stated.

    To date, the largest existing AI data center in the EU is operated by French AI firm Mistral at its Paris campus. Mistral, developer of the Le Chat chatbot, has yet to match the pace of innovation and scale set by leading U.S. players like OpenAI, creator of ChatGPT, and top Chinese competitors such as DeepSeek. While high-profile European leaders including French President Emmanuel Macron have publicly warned about the bloc’s lack of competitive homegrown AI companies, widespread public anxiety persists across the continent over both the economic disruption and privacy risks posed by rapidly advancing AI technology.

    The Commission emphasized that all AI products developed using the expanded gigafactory network will be required to adhere to the EU’s strict regulatory standards for data protection, safety, security and ethics, aligning with existing bloc rules including the Digital Services Act and Digital Markets Act.

    The initiative comes amid growing global scrutiny of the environmental footprint of large-scale AI infrastructure. In June, 40 mayors from major cities across the world – from Phoenix, U.S. to Melbourne, Australia – signed a global pact to mitigate the negative impacts of AI data center construction on local natural resources, energy prices and municipal climate targets.

  • Thousands evacuated in Crete as European wildfires continue to rage

    Thousands evacuated in Crete as European wildfires continue to rage

    A devastating wave of wildfires fanned by hurricane-force winds has torn through Southern Europe, leaving three firefighters dead and forcing mass evacuations across multiple countries, with the popular Greek tourist island of Crete among the hardest-hit regions.

    On the Greek island of Crete, roughly 8,000 residents and tourists were evacuated overnight from the Rethymno region, where an out-of-control wildfire that ignited Wednesday has expanded to a 15-kilometer active front. Wind gusts in the area have peaked at 125 kilometers per hour, reaching level 11 on the Beaufort scale, classified as violent wind. These extreme conditions have hampered suppression efforts, grounding aerial firefighting aircraft on Thursday morning and preventing crews from gaining the upper hand.

    The disaster has already claimed three lives: two Crete-based firefighters, 58-year-old Emmanouil Stratidakis and 25-year-old Pantelis Diamantakis, who became trapped and died near Krya Vrysi, and a third firefighter killed near the Peloponnese port of Gytheio. The Greek Fire Service has issued official condolences, and the two fallen Crete firefighters are scheduled for burial Thursday.

    As of Thursday, the full scale of property damage remains unconfirmed, though multiple residential structures and large swathes of agricultural land have already been destroyed by the blaze. Roughly 224 firefighters, supported by 53 ground engines, 11 specialized response units and two aircraft, have been deployed to contain the Rethymno fire. Evacuated civilians have been relocated to temporary emergency shelters in neighboring municipalities, with dedicated provisions arranged for visiting tourists who make up a large share of Crete’s mid-summer population.

    Crete’s wildfire crisis is part of a broader outbreak of extreme heat and wildfire activity across the European continent, driven by long-term warming that has made the region the fastest-warming continent on Earth, according to data from the Copernicus Climate Change Service. Europe has warmed twice as fast as the global average, fueling more frequent, intense heatwaves, severe drought conditions, and catastrophic wildfire seasons.

    The crisis extends far beyond Greece. In Spain, 600 people have been evacuated from a wildfire burning near the Portuguese border in Zamora, while a separate blaze in Ávila province has burned more than 43,000 hectares over the past week, making it the largest recorded wildfire in Spanish history. Fires near Madrid have stopped spreading, allowing thousands of displaced residents to return to their homes. Neighboring Portugal has reported five injuries from a fire in the eastern town of Valpaços.

    In Turkey, hundreds of homeowners have been evacuated as wildfires spread across the region, but authorities report most blazes there have now been brought under control. In France, the country’s largest wildfire since 1949, which has destroyed 42,000 hectares of land in the Gironde region, has not spread for three consecutive days. Cooler temperatures and forecast rain for Thursday are expected to further help suppression efforts, though several southeastern French regions have been placed under orange heatwave alerts starting at midday local time.

    Meteorological forecasts warn that the high-risk fire conditions currently concentrated in Southern Europe will shift toward central Europe over the coming week, with Greece and Turkey expected to remain among the most severely impacted regions.

  • Missile that left crater deep inside Poland was probably Russian – Polish PM

    Missile that left crater deep inside Poland was probably Russian – Polish PM

    In an incident that has escalated cross-border tensions amid Russia’s ongoing military campaign in Ukraine, a presumed Russian missile crashed into a rural field in eastern Poland early Thursday, leaving a sizable crater deep within Polish territory, official statements confirmed.

    The crash site, located a short distance from the small village of Tarnawa Kolonia, sits roughly 100 kilometers (62 miles) from Poland’s border with Ukraine. The impact left a crater stretching 10 meters (33 feet) across, and the incident unfolded concurrently with a massive Russian air assault targeting the western Ukrainian city of Lviv.

    Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced preliminary findings during an emergency gathering of government officials in Lublin, noting that all available evidence points to the object being a Russian Kh-101 missile. “All the indications are that it was a Russian Kh-101 missile, but we want to be 100% certain about the type of missile and who launched it,” Tusk said, emphasizing the need for a definitive, evidence-based conclusion before formal attribution.

    Ukraine’s acting Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha had previously characterized the incident as an incursion of NATO airspace, confirming his assessment that a Russian Kh-101 cruise missile had strayed into Polish territory during Russia’s large-scale strike on Ukrainian infrastructure.

    Polish Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz added context to the overnight activity, revealing that around 20 airborne objects were detected near Polish airspace during the overnight hours. Specialized pyrotechnical experts are currently conducting detailed forensic analysis to confirm the exact identity and origin of the object that impacted near Tarnawa Kolonia.

    Military records show that Poland’s armed forces first detected the rogue object at approximately 03:40 local time Thursday (01:40 GMT). An F-16 fighter jet was immediately scrambled to intercept the object, but it disappeared from Polish radar systems just minutes after detection.

    Prime Minister Tusk confirmed that, despite the destructive impact, no casualties have been reported from the incident. Even so, Polish authorities are treating the incursion and crash as a high-priority serious event, given its implications for regional security and NATO’s collective defense commitments.

    The incident comes just hours after Tusk held a bilateral meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Lublin Wednesday evening, during Zelensky’s return trip to Ukraine from high-level talks with former U.S. President Donald Trump.

    This is a developing breaking news story, with official investigations still ongoing. Additional details will be released as forensic analysis is completed and more information becomes available to authorities.

  • Monaco signs France U21 striker Abline to join Balogun in forward line

    Monaco signs France U21 striker Abline to join Balogun in forward line

    In a high-profile transfer deal confirmed on Thursday, Ligue 1 side AS Monaco has added attacking depth to its roster by signing French forward Matthis Abline from recently-relegated Nantes. The 23-year-old former France Under-21 international has put pen to paper on a five-year contract with the Principality-based club, though Monaco has not publicly disclosed the full financial terms of the transfer. Multiple industry reports peg the total transfer fee at approximately 25 million euros, equal to around $28.6 million.

    Abline’s performance at Nantes over the past two campaigns made him a target for Monaco, as he notched 15 goals in Ligue 1 play despite Nantes’ struggles that ultimately ended in relegation from France’s top flight. For the 2024-2025 season, Nantes will compete in Ligue 2, France’s second domestic division, opening the door for Abline’s move to a side competing in European competition.

    Monaco finished seventh in Ligue 1 last season, a result that earned the club a spot in the qualifying playoffs for the UEFA Conference League, which kick off on August 20. The signing of Abline creates a potentially dynamic new attacking combination alongside American striker Folarin Balogun, who is gearing up for his fourth season with the Monaco first team.

    Balogun, who has become one of the most high-profile American strikers in European soccer, earned global attention during the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, where he scored three goals for the United States men’s national team. The U.S. campaign ended in the round of 16 with a controversial elimination at the hands of Belgium, a match that Balogun was cleared to play in only after FIFA reversed a planned red card ban, a move that followed public intervention from then-U.S. President Donald Trump. Off the pitch, Balogun has recently made changes to his representation, joining basketball superstar LeBron James as a client of the prominent Klutch Sports agency.

  • Turkish police detain actor-turned-mayor Erdal Besikcioglu in latest raids targeting opposition

    Turkish police detain actor-turned-mayor Erdal Besikcioglu in latest raids targeting opposition

    ISTANBUL – In the newest round of law enforcement operations targeting Turkey’s main opposition bloc, law enforcement officials have taken into custody Erdal Besikcioglu, a former popular television actor who now serves as mayor of the Ankara district Etimesgut, the country’s Justice Ministry confirmed Thursday. The detention is part of a broader sweep that unfolded across nine Turkish provinces early Thursday, coordinated by the Ankara West Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office. Altogether, 52 suspects, including 42 sitting municipal officials and 13 private sector representatives, were targeted in pre-dawn raids that searched 71 locations spanning homes and public offices. Investigators seized physical documents and digital evidence during the operations, and three deputy mayors were among those taken into custody alongside Besikcioglu.

    Besikcioglu, who was elected to the Etimesgut mayoral post earlier this year as a candidate for the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), faces a series of allegations tied to municipal governance: investigators are probing claims of financial irregularities and document forgery linked to public tender processes, alongside questionable practices in parking lot leasing agreements and construction zoning approvals. All suspects in the operation face formal charges including establishing and operating a criminal network, illicit criminal group membership, embezzlement, bribery, extortion, and bid-rigging for public contracts.

    Prior to his entry into Turkish politics, Besikcioglu was a household name across the country, best known for his lead role as gruff detective Behzat Ç in the long-running hit police drama *Behzat Ç*, which aired from 2010 to 2019. His 2024 election win came as the opposition made significant gains across Turkey’s key urban centers, solidifying control of both the capital Ankara and the country’s largest city Istanbul.

    This latest detention is part of a years-long pattern of arrests targeting opposition-held local governments. Over the past two years, hundreds of elected mayors and municipal officials have been taken into custody as part of criminal investigations, almost all centered on allegations of public corruption. The highest-profile case to date remains that of Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, widely viewed as the most formidable potential challenger to long-serving President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Imamoglu has been held in prison since March 2024, and the multiple criminal cases against him carry the possibility of cumulative multi-decade prison sentences.

    the operation comes amid major upheaval for Turkey’s opposition, just weeks after a court ordered the removal of the CHP’s national leadership. Last Friday, the ousted CHP leader Ozgur Ozel launched a new breakaway political faction, the New Party, which has already drawn 90 defecting CHP members of parliament. This shift makes the New Party the largest opposition bloc in Turkey’s national legislature.

    Erdogan’s administration has repeatedly pushed back against claims that the investigations and arrests are politically motivated, insisting that Turkey’s judicial system operates as an impartial body free from political interference.

  • Cooler weather and potential rain move into the French region torched by wildfires

    Cooler weather and potential rain move into the French region torched by wildfires

    LEGE-CAP FERRET, France — A weeks-long wildfire crisis that has scorched more than 42,000 hectares of land in southwestern France’s Gironde region — an area four times larger than the entire city of Paris — may finally see some relief as shifting meteorological conditions bring cooler air, elevated humidity and predicted rain to the fire-ravaged Atlantic coast.

  • Russian strikes across Ukraine, from east to west, kill at least 8 and wound dozens

    Russian strikes across Ukraine, from east to west, kill at least 8 and wound dozens

    A wave of coordinated Russian missile and drone strikes targeting multiple regions across Ukraine overnight Wednesday into Thursday has left at least eight civilians dead and dozens more injured, marking the latest escalation in Moscow’s nearly weekly large-scale bombardment campaign that gained intensity over the summer months.

    Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed the breadth of the assault, noting targets stretched from the capital Kyiv and its surrounding suburbs to eastern cities including Dnipro and Kharkiv, and across western Ukraine including Lviv. In total, Russia launched more than 70 missiles—many of which were short-range ballistic missiles, which are difficult to intercept—and over 280 attack drones in the single overnight operation. Ukrainian air defense forces successfully intercepted more than 260 of the drones, a feat Zelenskyy called extraordinary given the persistent shortage of advanced air defense systems and missiles supplied by international partners.

    “Our warriors are accomplishing truly incredible things, demonstrating a very high level of professionalism,” Zelenskyy stated. “This Russian terror once again proves that protection against the Russian missile threat is the most important task when it comes to saving the lives of our people.”

    The deadliest single attack unfolded in the eastern Dnipropetrovsk region, where regional military administration head Oleksandr Hanzha confirmed six civilians were killed and 10 more injured. Among the fatalities were three children: a 6-year-old girl, an 11-year-old boy, and a 17-year-old boy, all killed in an attack on a residential neighborhood in Kryvyi Rih. Zelenskyy later confirmed the children’s parents were also killed in the same strike, while two additional children were pulled alive from the rubble of their destroyed home.

    “It was an ordinary home, blown into smithereens by a ballistic missile,” Zelenskyy said. He added that delays and shortages in deliveries of anti-ballistic missile defense systems from international allies directly enabled the level of destruction and loss of life seen in the attack, reiterating that accelerating defense support is critical to protecting Ukrainian civilians.

    Adjacent to Dnipropetrovsk, in the central Poltava region, a drone strike targeting private sector warehouses killed one civilian, regional governor Vitalii Diakivnych reported. A separate attack on a delivery hub sparked a large fire that was quickly contained by emergency response teams, with no additional casualties reported at that site.

    In western Ukraine’s Lviv region, which has increasingly become a target of Russian strikes in recent months, rescue operations continued through Thursday morning after an early morning strike around 4:45 a.m. Local military administration head Maksym Kozytskyi reported the number of injured rose to 30, while Lviv Mayor Andrii Sadovyi confirmed two multi-story residential buildings were heavily damaged. More than 20 additional homes, a local school, and two kindergartens also suffered damage, and multiple children were among the wounded, with one child hospitalized for serious injuries.

    In the capital Kyiv, a 31-year-old civilian was killed and two more injured when Russian ballistic missiles struck residential areas, Ukrainian national police confirmed. The attack damaged multiple apartment buildings, a local market, vehicle storage garages, and private cars. Just outside the capital, in the Kyiv region’s Brovary district, acting regional governor Ruslan Oliinyk reported five additional injuries, including a child and two women.

    In Moscow, Russia’s Defense Ministry issued its standard statement framing the strikes as a targeted attack on Ukrainian military infrastructure, claiming the operation hit air bases, arms production facilities, military telecommunications nodes, and logistics hubs across the regions attacked. The ministry also claimed Russian forces hit a military cargo ship in Ukraine’s Pivdennyi port and two additional vessels near Odesa, and that Russian air defenses downed 258 Ukrainian drones launched overnight in cross-border strikes.

    Cross-border attacks on Russian territory were confirmed by local officials, who reported fires at two warehouses operated by Wildberries, Russia’s largest domestic online retailer. Penza Governor Oleg Melnichenko said a Wildberries depot in his region caught fire, leaving one person injured and forcing the evacuation of more than 200 employees. A second Wildberries warehouse in Sarapul, located in the Udmurtia republic roughly 600 miles east of Moscow, was also struck by a Ukrainian drone and caught fire, with all employees evacuated safely. The strikes mark the latest in a string of attacks on Wildberries facilities across Russia that have caused hundreds of millions of dollars in damage.