Author: Solomon Alaka

Ireland’s Forensic Science Agency Marks Record Year as DNA Database Expands and Drug Seizures Surge

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Ireland’s forensic system entered a new era in 2024, with Forensic Science Ireland (FSI) delivering unprecedented levels of analysis and completing its long-planned move to a state-of-the-art laboratory in Backweston, Co Kildare. The year’s findings were detailed today as Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration Jim O’Callaghan published FSI’s Annual Report 2024, spotlighting a […]

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Ireland Unveils New Health Strategy for 2025–2028 as System Faces Rising Pressure

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Ireland’s Department of Health has published its Statement of Strategy 2025–2028, outlining how the health system aims to respond to growing demographic pressures, shifting public-health demands and a rapidly changing global environment. The new roadmap sets the tone for the next three years, with officials describing it as a blueprint for delivering “the right care […]

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Ireland Signals Major Overhaul of Online Safety Rules as Age-Verification Plans Advance

Solomon AlakaLeave a Comment on Ireland Signals Major Overhaul of Online Safety Rules as Age-Verification Plans Advance

Ireland is laying the groundwork for a significant tightening of online safety protections for young people, with Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport Patrick O’Donovan confirming that work is underway—but not yet complete—on a national age-verification system designed to curb children’s exposure to harmful content. The Minister briefed Cabinet this week, outlining ongoing progress rather […]

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Global campaign reveals how human rights ‘are the basis of our existence’

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UN News asked Astrid Van Genderen Stort, OHCHR chief of external engagement and partnerships, about hers.   “My everyday essentials are my family, a sense of belonging, knowledge, safety and the freedom to speak, do and live the way I deem best,” she responded. With the help of artificial intelligence, UN News has analysed the […]

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Afghanistan’s crisis deepens as human rights recede and aid funding falls

Solomon AlakaLeave a Comment on Afghanistan’s crisis deepens as human rights recede and aid funding falls

Briefing the Security Council, Georgette Gagnon, Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Afghanistan, and Tom Fletcher, the UN Emergency Relief Coordinator, said nearly half the population will need protection and humanitarian assistance in 2026. Women and girls remain “systematically excluded” from almost all aspects of public life, Ms. Gagnon said, as the ban on […]

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Nansen Award winners show compassion for refugees is far from fading

Solomon AlakaLeave a Comment on Nansen Award winners show compassion for refugees is far from fading

This year’s honourees include five remarkable laureates from Cameroon, Mexico, Ukraine, Iraq and Tajikistan, each recognised for their courage, empathy and determination to protect people forced to flee. Established in 1954, the award celebrates those who go far beyond the call of duty to support refugees, internally displaced people and the stateless. Announcing the winners, […]

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Department of Justice Rule Restores Equal Protection for All in Civil Rights Enforcement | Office of Public Affairs

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Today, the Justice Department issued a final rule updating its regulations under Title VI of the Civil Rights of 1964. This rule ensures that our nation’s federal civil rights laws are firmly grounded in the principle of equal treatment under the law by eliminating disparate-impact liability from its Title VI regulations. “For decades, the Justice […]

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Social media: Age-related bans won’t keep kids safe, UNICEF warns

Solomon AlakaLeave a Comment on Social media: Age-related bans won’t keep kids safe, UNICEF warns

After months of anticipation and debate over the government’s controversial move, under 16s woke up to find themselves locked out of popular platforms such as TikTok, Instagram and YouTube, according to media reports. The ban aims to protect young people from online abuse such as cyberbullying, exploitation and exposure to harmful content, all of which are detrimental to their mental health and well-being. Bans could backfire As […]

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Federal Court Permanently Prohibits Tampa-area Pharmacist from Filling Opioids Prescriptions and Pharmacy Dissolved | Office of Public Affairs

Solomon AlakaLeave a Comment on Federal Court Permanently Prohibits Tampa-area Pharmacist from Filling Opioids Prescriptions and Pharmacy Dissolved | Office of Public Affairs

Monday, a federal court prohibited a Tampa-area pharmacist from filling prescriptions for opioids and other controlled substances and entered a civil penalty against him in a case alleging violations of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). In a complaint filed in August 2022, the United States alleges that Nathaniel Esalomi unlawfully distributed powerful opioids by filling […]

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‘We won’t stop’: Afghan women keep businesses alive despite sweeping rights abuses

Solomon AlakaLeave a Comment on ‘We won’t stop’: Afghan women keep businesses alive despite sweeping rights abuses

For many, running a small business has become the only viable path to earning an income – and a way to support other women who have lost their jobs.  With help from the UN, these entrepreneurs are keeping their livelihoods going, often in the face of intense social pressure and strict rules governing women’s movement. […]

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