2 weeks agoNews 1Comments Off on Govt ‘failed’ Irish kids with ‘broken promises’, damning report finds as help demanded for ‘most marginalised children’
A DAMNING report shows that the last government “failed” Irish kids and must do more for our “most marginalised children”.
The Children’s Rights Alliance Report Card 2025 grades ministers on their delivery on commitments made by the last coalition of Fianna Fail, Fine Gael and the Green Party.
Children’s Rights AllianceChildren’s Rights Alliance’s Tanya Ward said actions will speak louder than words[/caption]
While the report recognises progress in some key areas, the Alliance said Government failed to keep a number of promises to children.
Tanya Ward, chief exec of the Children’s Rights Alliance, said: “Over the last five years we’ve seen broken promises, leaving some groups of children behind.
“Children and young people already on the fringes of society have been further marginalised by the lack of Government ambition.
“As many of the same political leaders return to their seat for the next five years, there are no more excuses.
“Actions will speak louder than words.
“The commitments to children and young people in the new Programme for Government will only be worth the paper they are written on with political drive, cross-departmental efforts and sustained investment to make them happen.”
The Report Card found the failure to carry through on a commitment to End Direct Provision had the “sharpest decline in performance” — giving the Government an E grade on the subject.
And it received its fourth consecutive “E” on child mental health issues, after an “unacceptable spike” in the number of children on wait lists for Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services — from 2,755 in 2020 to 3,830 in 2024.
Ms Ward added: “For children with special educational needs, their experience is being shaped by difficulties in accessing inclusive and appropriate education.
“The Guidelines for Behaviours of Concern were published in the final weeks of the last Government’s run.
“They do not fully address inappropriate use of seclusion and restraint practices.
“We have heard of children being physically held against their will, locked in rooms alone, even being dragged across the school floor.”
The last coalition also got a D minus on family homelessness at the end of their term.
The Children’s Rights Alliance also said Government failed to keep a number of promises to childrenGetty Images - Getty
2 weeks agoNews 1Comments Off on BBC Gaza doc cameraman ‘celebrated October 7 attacks’ in unearthed Tweets before controversial show pulled from iPlayer
A CAMERAMAN for a controversial BBC documentary about Gaza is said to have previously posted messages saluting the October 7 massacre.
Hatem Rawagh, who was listed as an additional cameraman on Gaza: How To Survive A Warzone, also shared videos showing off Hamas weapons.
Hatem Rawagh is said to have previously posted messages celebrating the October 7 massacreBBCThe main narrator of the BBC’s Gaza documentary, 13-year-old Abdulla Eliyazour, is claimed to be the son of Hamas official Dr Ayman Al-Yazouri[/caption]
BBCThe documentary has now been pulled by the BBC[/caption]
Hamas deputy minister of agriculture Dr Ayman Al-Yazouri is said to be Abdulla’s father
The Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis (Camera) uncovered tweets by Mr Rawagh, according to The Telegraph.
Mr Rawagh appeared to praise the October 7 massacre in a post on X on the day of the terror attack.
He wrote: “Whoever missed Oct 6 [1973] in Egypt … Oct 7 is happening [now] in Palestine.”
The comment seemed to reference the Yom Kippur War of 1973 when Egypt and Syria attacked Israel.
Mr Rawagh also looked to applaud the killing of an Israeli soldier in Erez near the Gaza border a day later.
He shared a clip of a gunman and said: “You are going to come back to this video a million times.”
Another showed celebrations at the Omari mosque in Gaza in April 2023 after a car attack in Tel Aviv.
The vehicle ploughed into a crowd of pedestrians killing an Italian citizen and wounding several other Italian and British tourists.
Mr Rawagh penned: “A festive atmosphere in Gaza’s Omari Mosque at the moment the news about the operation in Tel Aviv arrived.”
A spokesman for Camera said: “These posts appear to be glorifying the horrific terrorist acts committed on October 7, 2023.
“Anyone who wrote them has no place working for the BBC.
“Here is yet more evidence of the editorial failings in the documentary for which the BBC must answer.”
Earlier this week, the corporation apologised after it emerged that the film’s child narrator is the son of Ayman Alyazouri, who has worked as Hamas’s deputy minister of agriculture.
Following the discovery about Abdullah Al-Yazouri, who speaks about what life is like in the territory amid the war between Israel and Hamas, the BBC later added a disclaimer to the programme.
What happened on October 7?
ON OCTOBER 7, 2023, Hamas launched a brutal surprise attack on Israel, marking one of the darkest days in the nation’s history.
Terrorists stormed across the border from Gaza, killing over 1,200 people — most of them civilians — and kidnapping 250 others, including women, children, and the elderly.
The coordinated assault saw heavily armed fighters infiltrate Israeli towns, kibbutzim, and military bases, unleashing indiscriminate violence.
Innocent families were slaughtered in their homes, and graphic footage of the atrocities spread across social media, leaving the world in shock.
And as well as attacking people in their homes, they stormed the Nova music peace festival – killing at least 364 people there alone.
The massacre triggered a swift and massive retaliatory response from Israel, escalating into a full-scale war.
The attack not only reignited long-standing tensions in the region but also left deep scars on both sides of the conflict, setting the stage for the 16 months of devastation that followed.
Further accusations have been made about the doc, which was initially broadcast on Monday at 9pm on BBC Two, such as claims that other children were pictured with the militant group Hamas.
On its clarifications and corrections page, the BBC said: “Gaza: How To Survive A Warzone features important stories we think should be told – those of the experiences of children in Gaza.
“There have been continuing questions raised about the programme and in light of these, we are conducting further due diligence with the production company.
“The programme will not be available on iPlayer while this is taking place.”
London-based Hoyo Films made the film after working with the BBC on the documentary Ukraine: Enemy In The Woods.
Since October 2023, when Hamas attacked Israeli civilians including a music festival, more than 48,000 Palestinians have died, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
The militant group is currently releasing hostages to Israel as part of a ceasefire agreement.
The Sun has contacted the BBC and Mr Rawagh for comment.
ReutersThe documentary tells the experiences of the conflict in Gaza from the perspective of children in the safe zone[/caption]
BBCThe BBC’s apology showed what new text will feature on the documentary to give clarification on Abdullah[/caption]
Abdulla also appeared on C4 in 2023 under a different name with a man who claimed to be his father, but who’s said to be his uncle, Khalil AbushammalaBBC director-general Tim DaviePA
2 weeks agoNews 1Comments Off on Kinahan assassin ‘feeling pressure’ in jail and ‘clinging to hope’ he’ll get Hutch murder rap overturned with appeal bid
KINAHAN cartel assassin Thomas ‘Nicky’ McConnell has appealed his conviction for the murder of Gareth Hutch, it has emerged.
Thomas McConnell has appealed his conviction for the murder of Gareth Hutchwww.collinsphotos.comGareth Hutch was murdered in 2016Crispin Rodwell - The Sun Dublin
The killer – currently being held at Portlaoise Prison – has told fellow inmates of his plan to appeal his conviction for the eighth murder in the Kinahan and Hutch feud.
But it could be 2027 before his appeal is heard due to a backlog of cases.
The Courts Service have also been made aware of his plans to have his conviction quashed.
One prison source told us: “McConnell is busy telling people that he’s lodged his appeal and is confident of getting a result.
“He still can’t accept his conviction but it will be a long time before his conviction is even heard.
“He’s feeling the pressure in Portlaoise and he’s clinging on to hope that he can have his conviction overturned.”
His decision to appeal the sentence has also caused anger in the north inner city area of Dublin.
One local told us: “Nicky McConnell is hated in this area because of his involvement in the Gareth Hutch murder.
“Gareth Hutch was a soft target and they left his son without a father.
“McConnell deserves to spend the rest of his life in prison for what he did – Gareth Hutch never stood a chance.”
Since his conviction in December, McConnell has been keeping a low profile in the high security prison.
But he was caught up in an incident in the prison this week when he helped crystal meth dealer Nathan McDonnell when he was attacked by Kinahan associate Glen Thompson.
McConnell was the fourth member of the Kinahan cartel hit team who targeted Gareth Hutch.
Jonathon Keogh, Regina Keogh and Thomas Fox are also serving life for the dad of one’s murder.
She said: “Since I received the devastating news that my son Gareth was murdered, I have not known a moment’s peace. My chest has a constant ache that never goes away.”
Detective Superintendent Colm Murphy hailed his colleagues for their work on the near nine-year investigation.
2 weeks agoNews 1Comments Off on ‘It’s like playing EuroMillions with my child’s education’ mum fumes as son, 5, loses special school spot after hat draw
A DEVASTATED mum who can’t to find a place in a special school for her son has told how the State is “playing EuroMillions” with her child’s education.
New Education Minister Helen McEntee last week said that she will make sure every child needing special education will have a school place come September.
Jay Meehan has been left without a place at a local special schoolJay’s mum Rebecca was left furious after missing out on a place after names were drawn from a hatJay is one of 20 children who have been left without a place in the area
However, parents across Ireland are still struggling to find places in special schools that can cater for their kids.
Autistic Jay Meehan, five, is one of 20 children who have been left without a place at their local special school — St John’s in Dungarvan, Co Waterford.
The school’s waiting list was so oversubscribed that a lottery-style draw took place for the eight available places.
Jay’s mum Rebecca Meehan told The Irish Sun: “The names were basically drawn out of a hat.
“It was done by a lottery system with a Superintendent Garda in the area. It’s mental.
“It is all above board as well. It’s like playing the Euromillions with my child’s education.”
The situation highlights the chronic lack of school places for children with additional needs that is an ongoing problem for families across the country.
Rebecca has been campaigning with other families in Dungarvan for two temporary modular units to be built at St John’s School — to take in more children.
She said: “The system just seems to be invented to exhaust parents.
“We have all our facts. The children have their rights. The constitution is there to protect them. It’s a stressful environment for a lot of parents. It’s unfair.
‘I CAN’T BUILD A SCHOOL’
“I’ve given up my career. I’ve done a masters in autism studies. I’ve done an SNA course.
“We have a sensory room in the house. We have a service dog for him. I’ve gone after absolutely everything I can physically get him but an education — I can’t build a school. If I could I would.
“As parents, we are doing everything we can.
“These kids need this school and they could be in these modular units by September.
“It is going to happen. He is going to that school. I will chain myself to the gates of the school if they don’t let him in.”
REGRESSION RISK
Earlier this month, Rebecca explained: “Even if I was willing to bus him off to Waterford or Cork, there are no places.
“I’m not wasting a second of his education putting him into a setting that’s unsuitable or risking a regression.
“I don’t need a babysitter, I need an education for him. I feel really strongly about that because it’s his right to have that.”
Principal of St John’s Special School, Aoife O’Neill, told the Irish Examiner: “I am working with the NCSE and partners in Cork to see how capacity can be expanded down there to help our cause here and more importantly to help the parents [and] guardians who are crying out for an appropriate school place for their child.”
SPECIAL SCHOOL BATTLE
Elsewhere, mum Anita Daynes is facing a similar battle to try and find her son, Leighton, a place in a special school in Dublin.
The seven-year-old from Tallaght is autistic and has a moderate intellectual disability.
Leighton currently goes to a mainstream school, with the help of an SNA, but his mum says that doctors and teachers agree he needs to be in a special school.
However, he has been repeatedly left on waiting lists for special schools in recent years without ever managing to get a place.
Mum Anita told The Irish Sun: “Leighton has an SNA in the school who is amazing, but the school has no facilities. I had to give up work two years ago because I kept getting phone calls every day to come and change his nappy as they have no facilities.
‘FIGHTING FOR EVERYTHING’
“I’ve been fighting for everything and I’ve done every single course they’ve recommended to try and help but there are just no services.
“Every year I get a letter from the HSE to say he will be seen to next year, and then it becomes the next year and the next year.
“Just to get his assessment of needs I sat outside our HSE facility for three months every day until they gave us an appointment and I’d say they only rang me to get rid of me.”
“We have a sensory room in the house. We have a service dog for him. I’ve gone after absolutely everything I can physically get him but an education — I can’t build a school. If I could I would.”
Rebecca Meehan
Anita is waiting to hear back from two special schools in the area for a place this September, but parents have been told there are staff shortages which are impacting places.
Anita belongs to a group of local parents called Fighting for Appropriate School Places, who have come together to campaign.
MUM’S DESPERATION
She added: “We’re going to be having a protest outside the Dail or government buildings.
“I would go on hunger strike. I really would stay outside their door, day and night, once I have someone to look after my kids.
“I know that might sound a bit nuts but it is just whatever you can do.”
Anita and Leighton’s brother Callen, nine, have been trying to teach him sign language at home.
She said: “Only recently he is starting to do some of the signs. That has taken us two years, but if he was in a school where kids were doing that all the time it would be better for him.”
In a message to Taoiseach Micheal Martin, Anita said: “I’d like him to think about what it is like to step into our shoes for one day — the stress that we go through to try and get our children an education.
“They need to do more for the schools and the SNAs need to be paid properly. Our kids would be lost without the SNAs.”
Meanwhile, a group of more than 50 parents are planning to sleep outside the Department of Education on Friday and stay there for 24 hours to highlight the need for more special school places across the country.
Jay’s mum Rebecca has been campaigning with other families in Dungarvan for two temporary modular units to be built at St John’s School
2 weeks agoNews 1Comments Off on Best Performances in Christopher Nolan Movies, Ranked
Apart from being a meticulously brilliant filmmaker, and creating thought-provoking films, Christopher Nolan is highly revered in the entertainment industry. His films are often praised for their complex storylines, grand cinematography, and direction. However, the actors’ performances are equally important to a movie’s success. All characters played well are imperative to a film’s success. And […]
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
2 weeks agoNews 1Comments Off on 18-year-old boy killed, teen girl injured after motorbike collides with minivan in NYC
An 18-year-old boy was killed after the motorbike he was riding on with a 14-year-old girl collided with a minivan at a Bronx intersection Monday evening, cops said.
2 weeks agoNews 1Comments Off on Party positions only for those who work on the ground, says K’taka Dy CM Shivakumar
Bengaluru, Feb 25 (SocialNews.XYZ) Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) President and Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar said the party will reward only those workers who sincerely work on the ground and not those who lobby...
